Dear Editor, Unbelievable – APNU/AFC has no plans to address the broken medicine and medical supplies disaster that Guyana faces today. Hundreds of thousands of Guyanese have suffered from the lack of availability of medicines and medical supplies and APNU/AFC has totally ignored this life and death issue in their manifesto, not a single word. Two days ago, I met a woman struggling with her walking stick outside of the Leonora Hospital. She complained she just left the pharmacy where she was told there is no metformin, a critical medicine…
Read MoreMonth: February 2020
High-level Commonwealth team in Guyana to observe polls
A high-level delegation from the Commonwealth Secretariat, led by former Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur, has arrived in Guyana and is urging all participants in the upcoming General and Regional Elections to be true to their commitments for free and fair elections. This is according to a statement released by Arthur on Monday, announcing his arrival as the Head of an Observer group team of 11 persons from across the Commonwealth. This includes Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe and the Pacific. “They bring a wealth of experience from across the…
Read MoreYou got the ‘good lie’ from the coalition Government
– Phillips tells Parika farmers Residents of Parika and surrounding communities on the East Bank of Essequibo were on Monday informed of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) plans to revitalise the Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) economy. While at the same public meeting held in Parika, Prime Ministerial Candidate Mark Phillips reminded supporters of the draconian measures put in place by the incumbent coalition. He noted that in 2015, the APNU/AFC promised to support farmers but instead raised the taxes and fees for land and irrigation. “How can you help…
Read MoreUS implements new laws for Caribbean green card holders
The United States has implemented new laws for Caribbean and other foreign nationals who are permanent residents or green card holders, according to a CMC report. According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), green card holders who failed to admit that they are immigrants, when filing their income tax returns, or who failed to report some of their income, could result in deportation. Caribbean men, between 18 and 25, who also failed to register with the US Selective Service, could also be deported, USCIS said. According to…
Read MoreSome useful advice for the next government
Dear Editor, General Elections are now very near. Given the troubled history of elections and their aftermaths in Guyana, Guyanese at home and abroad may be worrying. I share their concern and I make a call for all to keep the peace. There should be a firm commitment not to resort to violence. A number of new parties have sprung up. That can only be good for democracy, so I wish them well. However, the trend so far has been that, come Election Day, mini-parties evaporate like drops of water…
Read MoreCourt throws out Ferguson’s application to muzzle Guyana Times
Justice Gino Persaud on Tuesday denied an application by Government Minister Annette Ferguson to muzzle Guyana Times and Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo. The Minister had sought an injunction from the High Court to prevent Jagdeo from making statements regarding her acquisition of lands and to restrain Guyana Times from reporting or further publishing anything on the matter. The unsuccessful injunction was filed in January. In handing down the ruling, Justice Persaud noted the importance of leaving freedom of speech unfettered especially in an elections period. Additionally, he pointed out that…
Read MorePress body flays GECOM over slow release of information
The Guyana Press Association (GPA) criticised the slow manner in which information of public concern pertaining to elections is being released by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to the media. In a statement on Wednesday, the GPA, which is headed by journalist Nazima Raghubir, noted that GECOM must be held accountable for not clarifying misinformation and accusations made with the urgency it requires. “The GPA is dissatisfied with the lack of timely information from GECOM, and slow response to matters of national interest relative to the pending General and Regional…
Read MoreBack in the day celebrations
The day…
…for the Disciplined Forces Well, your Eyewitness wasn’t surprised at how smoothly the voting by the Disciplined Forces went – after all they’re the DISCPLINED Forces, aren’t they?? If THEY couldn’t get their act together for a simple act of dropping a piece of paper into a box, then what are we spending all those billions of dollars every year for?? But what he was surprised about was that so many of them showed up to vote – 82%!! That figure’s certainly gonna better the civilian population’s showing come March…
Read MorePAHO chief calls on Caribbean countries to intensify COVID-19 preparedness
The Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Dr Carissa F Etienne, on Wednesday urged Caribbean and other countries in the Americas to intensify their plans to prepare and respond to COVID-19, given the appearance of cases of new coronavirus disease in the region of the Americas. According to PAHO, the Ministry of Health of Brazil confirmed the country’s first case of COVID-19 on February 26. The patient is a 61-year old man who recently returned from travel to Italy, where an outbreak of the virus has been ongoing…
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