May 2019 – Page 9 – Guyana Times International

Guyana elected to WHO Executive Board

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence was elected to the Executive Board of the World Health Organisation (WHO), giving Guyana a voice in helping to shape global health policies. The WHO’s Executive Board has oversight responsibility for implementing decisions and policies of the World Health Assembly (WHA), which is an advisory body to facilitate WHO’s work. Minister Lawrence will serve in the position for the next three years. The WHO’s Executive Board comprises 34 individuals and meets twice annually; in January and in May. The 145th session of the Executive Board…

Severe penalties for accountants, auditors if caught in money laundering – AG warns

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Attorney General (AG) and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams, SC, on Saturday highlighted penalties that accountants and auditors could face if they refuse to report or are found to be involved in money laundering and terrorism financing activities. The AG delivered brief remarks at a session hosted to sensitise the professionals on their roles and responsibilities as Guyana moves swiftly towards Anti-Money Laundering/Countering Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance. “The consequences that come with being involved in money laundering, whether willingly or not, are severe with penalties such as the…

President yet to declare assets to Integrity Commission

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

… 716 public officials also in default The Integrity Commission had flagged a number of public officials earlier this year for failing to make their declarations, and President David Granger is one of the defaulters, having breached the stipulated deadline of May 20, 2019. The agency recently informed that all public officials were required to make these submissions, in compliance with the Integrity Commission Act. On the sidelines of an event on Wednesday, the President explained that he has not yet submitted his declaration but has made contact with the…

“Water under the bridge”

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

…Alexander says of legal advice which points to no need for house-to-house registration Discussions on the legal opinion offered by the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM’s) legal officer of the need to update the voters’ list are being pushed aside even as the possible need for early elections loom larger by the day. At the conclusion of GECOM’s statutory meeting on Tuesday, Government-nominated Commissioner Vincent Alexander informed the media that the legal opinion is, in fact, “water under the bridge”. “For all intents and purposes, we are not discussing the substance…

Independence and Armed Forces Indian Exclusion

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

By Ravi Dev As we approach another “celebration” of our Independence from Britain, crime once again threatens to overwhelm the country. This is even as President Granger sits on the last of a string of British-funded proposals to “professionalise” the Police Force, which appears to be permanently on its back foot. It is more than passing strange that none of these plans recommend that the Disciplined Forces in general, and the Police Force in particular, be made more ethnically representative of the country’s population – much as the British Police…

A tale of…

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

…two communities Ever since sliding into office, the PNC-led government’s been working to relocate the squatters on a privately-owned piece of land in the prime real estate location at Broad and Lombard Streets. They were first told they’d be given house lots at Mocha on the East Bank, but they refused that offer after the NDC balked. Finally, a month ago, the government announced they’d be moving 20 of the families into houses built in collaboration with FFTP at Prospect on the East Bank. The remainder will be relocated…

Violence against women in Guyana has become a runaway train while Govt sleeps

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor, Even as we agonise over the gruesome murder of Zaila Sugrim by her intimate partner this past weekend, news came out of Essequibo of another woman cruelly stabbed to death by her husband. None of these incidents is the direct fault of the President or his Government. But Violence Against Women (VAW), including Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), has further escalated in Guyana and is getting worse every day. Intimate Partner Violence and deaths are a genuine national crisis, demanding urgent action by the Government. As early as 2006,…

Jaguar captured at Essequibo Coast

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019 TIMES INT'L

A jaguar has been captured by a resident of Lima Sands, Essequibo Coast, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam). Guyana Times International understands that the majestic animal was discovered wandering around the village about 03:00h on Tuesday. Marvin Calvan quickly went into action and captured the animal. The jaguar, a young female, is currently secured in a cage. Jaguars often roam the area at nights, and residents complain that the animals feed on their livestock. The Guyana Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Panthera Corporation, aimed at conserving the…

3,220 Guyanese overstayed in US from Oct. 2017 – Sept. 2018

May 17, 2019May 17, 2019 TIMES INT'L

By Jarryl Bryan Guyana has been red flagged by another United States (US) report and this time it is the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which revealed in its 2018 Entry/Exit Overstay Report that some 3,220 Guyanese overstayed in the US on non-immigrant visas, after arriving for business or on vacation. This, according to the report, occurred over the period of October 2017 to September 2018, during which time 66,416 Guyanese were supposed to depart from the US. Guyana Times International understands that efforts are being made by the Immigration…

Guyana eagerly awaits CCJ ruling

May 17, 2019May 17, 2019 TIMES INT'L

…questions raised as to how far Govt will go to hold on to power Even as the coalition Government fights for its survival in the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), a Trinidad and Tobago (T&T)-based political analyst has opined that the Caribbean at large on a daily basis questions the reason Government even went to court in the first place. This is according to Dr Bishnu Ragoonath, a Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Political Science at the University of West Indies at its St Augustine campus in…