TIMES INT'L

Campbellville woman robbed, beaten by armed bandits

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

An Austin Street, Campbellville, Georgetown woman is now traumatised and nursing injuries to her head after she was beaten and robbed by gunmen who invaded her home in a brazen daylight robbery on Wednesday morning. The woman, 49-year-old Baljinder Kaur, was at home with her maid when the three armed men invaded at about 10:00h. This newspaper was told that neighbours heard screams emanating from Kaur’s residence and shortly after saw men with a black bag exiting the premises. One of the men was seen placing a gun into his…

Justice Patterson steps down

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chairman, retired Justice James Patterson, has stepped down and handed in his resignation for the position, which the Caribbean Court of Justice recently found, that he was unconstitutionally holding. This announcement was made on Tuesday after Patterson met with President David Granger. The vacating of the position came days after public pressure for the CCJ ruling to be accepted. In a statement following the meeting between Granger and Patterson, Government’s commitment to accept the ruling invalidating Patterson’s appointment was reiterated. This would mean that Government has…

Conflict of interest?

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor, The revelation that ExxonMobil paid the travelling expenses of the Minister of Petroleum’s wife, First Lady Sandra Granger; Head of the Department of Energy, Dr. Mark Bynoe; and that of the entourage is extremely disappointing to learn. It would seem that the Granger Administration is incapable of comprehending what constitutes ethical and acceptable behaviour. In sports coaching, we look for ‘teaching’ moments, and then there are times when repetition of mistakes is so glaring that the coach must take the ‘hairdryer’ approach, made famous by Sir Alex Ferguson…

Things you didn’t know about the Guyana’s Giant Cat – The Jaguar

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

It is always thrilling to see one of these in the wild, especially while driving through the rainforest trails in Guyana. Many travelers claim to have seen these big cats chilling on the Linden-Lethem trail. The jaguar is one of the largest carnivorous mammals in Central or North America and the largest cat in South America. Jaguars vary in color but generally they are tawny yellow with black rosettes all over their body. They usually have a white underbelly, the throat, outer surface of the legs and lower flanks are…

Sentencing for teen who killed Perry Mars postponed to July 16

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Eighteen-year-old Naomi Adams, called “Shortee”, who recently admitted to unlawfully killing overseas-based Professor Pariedeau Mars, also called “Perry”, in furtherance of a robbery, had her sentencing further postponed to July 16, 2019. The teen, who was represented by Attorney-at-Law Mark Conway on her first appearance, opted to plead guilty to a manslaughter charge which stated that on May 12, 2016 in the county of Demerara, she killed Mars, in the furtherance of a robbery. Moreover, the trial judge, Justice Navindra Singh had postponed the teen’s sentencing to Monday to accommodate…

Leadership in a time of crisis

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Whenever a country is facing a crisis, the expectation is for the political leadership to buckle down in immediate, genuine and meaningful engagements with the intention of deriving practical solutions. In these situations, it becomes imperative on the Government of the day to initiate those necessary discussions in the interest of the country. That said, nothing prevents the Opposition from indicating the need for such talks and making itself available to be engaged at any time. Further, these discussions do not have the luxury of convenient time, for the…

The world is watching you President Granger

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor, Retired Justice James Patterson, the illegally appointed Chairman of GECOM, has finally vacated his post. This is a commendable act, and I say: “Enjoy your retirement years in peace”. This gentleman, in his golden years, was made to suffer ridicule and shame by his president, who, for 20 long months, dragged him through the mud, all because he was a willing participant in a grand scheme of things. However, that has all ended. We are accustomed to the cliché “all good things must come to an end”; however,…

Ramjattan wanted to be AG

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

Founding Member and recently elected leader of the Alliance For Change (AFC), Khemraj Ramjattan has disclosed that after his party in coalition with the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) won the 2015 elections, he wanted the position of Attorney General (AG). However, during a live radio programme last week, Ramjattan said he had to step aside since Basil Williams, a member of People’s National Congress/Reform (PNC/R), also wanted the position. The PNC/R is the largest party in the five-party APNU, which holds the majority in the coalition Government. “My…

“There’s no conclusion as yet” – Agri Minister says on US catfish ban

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

It has been over one year since the United States imposed a ban on the exportation of catfish from Guyana. To date, the Agriculture Ministry has fostered discussions, but there has been no definite conclusion on when the sanction would be lifted. Speaking with Guyana Times International, Agriculture Minister Noel Holder recently posited that discussions with his US counterpart would continue in the future. “We’re still in talks with the Americans. There’s no conclusion as yet … We will have discussions later and then we’ll get closer,” Holder said. Last…

Indian Envoy says better tabulation process needed for faster election results in Guyana

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019 TIMES INT'L

As Guyana prepares for General and Regional Elections in a few months’ time, outgoing Indian High Commissioner to Guyana, Venkatachalam Mahalingam believes that the country needs to have a better tabulation and compilation process so as to reduce the lengthy delays in delivering the poll results. Having observed the 2015 General and Regional Elections as well as two Local Government Elections – 2016 and 2018 – during his five-year tenure here, High Commissioner Mahalingam explained during an interview with Guyana Times International one thing that would ensure the timely delivery…