May 2019 – Page 2 – Guyana Times International

Guyana’s private sector calls on Govt to do more to tackle rising crime

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

While acknowledging the recent efforts of the Guyana Police Force, the Private Sector Commission (PSC) believes more should be done to curb the spate of violent crimes across the country. Over recent weeks, there has been an alarming increase in crimes, particularly in Berbice, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) where several armed robberies ended in fatalities. The situation resulted in the Force’s SWAT unit being deployed to the region and some days later, three bandits were shot and killed during a standoff with the Police. It is believed that the now…

Guyana’s Green State Development Strategy finally launched

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

…Private sector hopes to see economic programmes transcend regime change The Green State Development Strategy (GSDS) was officially launched on Tuesday after a meeting between the 11th Advisory Committee, with officials providing details on proposals for the document that can make a tangible difference in the lives of Guyanese. According to head of the Ministry of the Presidency’s Project Management Office, Marlon Bristol, the GSDS is a living document. This means consultations and discussions for improving the document will continue to be held. “A living (consultation) means we are always…

Oil production will transform Guyana – President Granger

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

President David Granger emphasised in his Independence Day message that the future belongs to the youths of Guyana. Calling Guyana’s independence transformative, the President noted that May 26, 1966, laid the foundations for a better life. The Head of State said that the immediate post-Independence decade was a period of effective efforts aimed at expanding the country’s infrastructure and improving public services. These nation-building initiatives, he added propelled rapid improvements in the country’s economic, physical and social infrastructure. “The newly-independent State strolled onto the global stage with confidence. It became…

Ecuadorian jailed in Guyana over forged US visas, cocaine possession

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

An Ecuadorian was slapped with two charges and taken to the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday. Julio Harreira stood before acting Chief Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus and admitted to both charges, which stated that on May 23 at Charlotte Street, Georgetown, he had in his possession 0.6 grams of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking. The second charge stated that between May 1 and May 23, 2019 in Georgetown, he conspired with person(s) unknown to commit forgery. Police Prosecutor Adduni Innis told the court that on May 23, ranks of the…

Berbice pensioner crushed to death by drunk driver

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

A pensioner was on Tuesday afternoon crushed to death in his car after a sand truck being driven by a drunken man crashed into it on the Corentyne Highway. Dead is 71-year-old Narinedatt Lowhar, called “Uncle Balo”, of lot 23 Number 47 Village, Corentyne. At the time of the accident, he and his wife were in a motorcar bearing registration plate number PJJ 25 and were turning into their yard when the truck bearing registration plate number GPP 2369 slammed into the car sending it 30 meters away. Welliama Lingen,…

Changes…

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

…and constitutional B.S. When the AFC were in the Opposition, their “big Issue” was “constitutional change”. They pointed out all sorts of democratic “inconsistencies” in what remained essentially Burnham’s 1980 Constitution, which had been customised to satisfy his megalomaniacal, dictatorial compulsions. In the Manifesto crafted with APNU after they became joined at the hip was the promise under the heading “priority Areas to be addressed”: “The introduction of a meaningful Constitutional Reform Programme geared towards improved governance and fair representation”. So what happened during the following four years, since we…

Mental health still a major problem in Guyana – CMO

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

The latest information provided by the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) suggests that the challenges of mental health in Guyana consume more resources than HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis (TB) combined. This is an idea of the extent of the problem. While mental health issues have been dealt with from a reactionary standpoint over the years, Guyana’s Chief Medical officer (CMO), Dr Shamdeo Persaud, in an exclusive interview with Guyana Times International on Monday stated that a more holistic approach is needed to tackle mental health, which has become…

A Royal visit to welcome Guyana’s independence

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

A then 20-year-old reporter Claudette Earle, now a retired newspaper editor, pens her firsthand experience of the festivities during HRH Queen Elizabeth’s visit in the monumental year of 1966 just prior to Guyana gaining independence. With her permission, Guyana Times Sunday Magazine reprints a now historic event. “The little child and his mother were among the hundreds who had walked miles down the East Bank road before 7 o’clock that morning in order to secure positions of vantage along the streets the queen was scheduled to pass. They had stood…

Ghana in talks with Guyana for possible co-operation in oil and gas sector

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Director of the Energy Department, Dr Mark Bynoe on Tuesday met with a high-level Ghanaian delegation in Guyana to engage the Government on areas of mutual interest in the oil and gas sector. The team was led by Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Energy In Charge of petroleum Dr Mohammed Amin Adam and included Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana, Napoleon Abdulai and 15 others. The team later paid a courtesy call on Minister of State Dawn Hastings-Williams, who was accompanied by Natural Resources Minister, Raphael Trotman. During the meeting with…

“Badness is not it”

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019 TIMES INT'L

…Buju tells Guyana’s youth Jamaican reggae and dancehall artiste, Buju Banton performed to a sold out crowd at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence on Saturday night. During the concert, Banton, who was recently released from a United States prison after serving for drug trafficking, preached messages of peace, harmony and urged young people to stay away from violence. In a high energy performance, Banton did not disappoint the well over 19,000 fans who turned up at the national stadium. He bellowed out some of his old school classic driving the…