…with oil contract! Nobody could possibly confuse Raphael Trotman with Mick Jagger – or any other member of the Rolling Stones, for that matter! But even if they did – in some fevered state! – unlike the Stones, who declared, “I can’t get no satisfaction”, Trotman, looking like the proverbial Cheshire cat, declared he – and his government – were “satisfied” with the oil contract he “renegotiated” with ExxonMobil!! Of course he’s satisfied!! And why not? He not only got an all-expenses-paid vacation with his wife-to-be, but God knows what…
Read MoreMonth: January 2018
Mindset Shifts for Success in 2018
By Dr. Rosh Khan As you turn the chapter on 2017 and leap into 2018, you’re probably filled with breath-taking excitement and purpose! New resolutions. Bigger goals. Higher targets. It’s easy (and fun) to get caught up in the thrill of it all. We have a fresh chance for greater success in 2018. But can I ask that we be brutally honest for a moment? I have zero intentions of bursting the balloon of hope for all that 2018 will do for you, but it’s time to queue a healthy…
Read MoreG$150M cemetery restoration project ongoing
In what could be called an ongoing project, the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) of Georgetown has commenced a G$150M restoration exercise of the Le Repentir Cemetery. The project which commenced late last year is part of a wider strategy to sustainably restore the city of Georgetown. According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), Town Clerk Royston King said that the Council is taking an aggressive approach to ensure the thorough restoration of the area. “We have hired under the emergency clause of the Act, a contractor with the…
Read MoreThe Hezekiah Effect…
…will now doom us? Now that Raphael Trotman, the Minister of Natural Resources, has released the Exxon oil contract, Guyana will just have to hold its breath as Guyanese await the “Hezekiah Effect” to kick in. This dreaded doomsday “Effect”, of course, was what Trotman assured us was the reason he hadn’t fessed up when he signed off on the bonus and other financial inducements from the mega-oil company, as it obtained the right to exploit the Stabroek field which has 3.2 billion barrels of oil – and counting. You…
Read MoreGun-toting bandit snatches gold chain
Police in E Division (Linden-Kwakwani) are investigating an incident where a male victim was robbed of his gold chain in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) on Sunday evening. A video of the incident has since been making rounds on social media, showing a gunman and two other accomplices, all unmasked and casually walking up to a small group of people at Republic Avenue, Mackenzie at approximately 21:42h. One of the bandits then pulled out a gun, pointed it at the victim who was part of the group, and snatched his…
Read MoreExxon contract ties hands of successive Govts – Ram
The oil contract Guyana has with ExxonMobil will tie the hands of successive Governments. This is according to Chartered Accountant Christopher Ram, who in his blog noted that the Stability Clause of the renegotiated contract has been increased from just one paragraph (the 1999 agreement) to four. He observed that the increases protect the interest of the operators. “The Government’s hands are tied, and it is effectively prevented from exercising one of the most fundamental and sovereign duties of any State in relation not only to the oil companies but…
Read MoreLethem businessman released on G$1M bail over illegal airstrip
The Lethem businessman who was charged in connection with the construction of an illegal airstrip was on Tuesday granted G$1 million bail after making an application in the High Court. Hutashan Ramsingh, also called “Seon Singh”, stood before Justice Brassington Reynolds and had his Attorneys Jerome Khan in association with Ian Chung make a petition for bail. Bail was granted in the sum of G$1 million and he is required to report to the Lethem Police Station every Monday, starting January 8. The matter was transferred to the Lethem Magistrate’s…
Read MoreGold Board gets new GM
…refuses to renew contract of former GM The Guyana Gold Board (GGB) has a new General Manager, with the announcement being made on Tuesday that acting General Manager Eondrene Thompson has been elevated to the substantive position at the entity. Thompson, who acted in the position for some eight months, is the former substantive Finance Manager of the Gold Board. Her appointment is effective January 1, 2018. A statement from the GGB said the Board of Directors took a unanimous decision that the organisation needed to proceed in a new…
Read MoreFederalism to end ethnic conflict
In the lead-up to our Independence-era ethnic violence, Sir Arthur Lewis considered the Westminster majoritarian political system being bequeathed and asked, “Are we, on counting heads, to conclude that…the Indians of British Guyana may liquidate the Negroes?” More than most of his peers, Lewis appreciated the qualitative difference of ethnic politics from the premises of Liberalism, and his allusion to “liquidation” refers to the deep-seated fears that can be aroused in such polities. Fifty years later, in his column last week, “Ending Ethnic Political Conflict”, Dr Henry Jeffrey alluded to…
Read MoreResilience in the face if adversity
Sunday Times Magazine ‘Persons of the Year’ The Wales Estate Sugar Workers By Shemuel Fanfair The end of 2017 saw an uncertain future for thousands of men and women across the sugar belt with the retrenchment of their employment, but as they begin to contemplate what lies ahead, a suitable marker can be taken from the challenges that have befallen the workers formerly attached to the Wales Sugar Estate. December 31, 2016 was the official date for the cessation of operations at the century old entity. While the circumstances that…
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