Georgetown Mayor Ubraj Narine was on Wednesday re-elected unchallenged to serve again in the same capacity for 2020. Councillors gathered at City Hall where individual votes were tallied. Members of the Private Sector also showed up to witness the election process. Narine, who was the sole nominee, received 22 votes. Alfred Mentore, the former Deputy Mayor, also returned to serve in that capacity. Meanwhile, the Council also elected a Finance Committee, which included People’s National Congress (PNC) member, Oscar Clarke; Trichia Richards, Bishram Kuppen, Ivelaw Henry, Yvonne Ferguson, Cynthia Stewart…
Read MoreAuthor: TIMES INT'L
When will the President dissolve Parliament?
Dear Editor, The vulgar refusal of Mr Granger to dissolve Parliament in keeping with his obligations under the Constitution of Guyana further exposes the flagrant dictatorial hegemony of his and the PNC’s abuse of the presidential authority. Given the continuous and relentless exposure of their clandestine contaminating intent at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), the cabal now attempts to further influence and scapegoat the organisation’s willing or unwilling patrimony to justify the ongoing exploitation of Guyanese decency. Citizens must, therefore, be prepared and decisively stop this runaway train now! Public…
Read MorePPP calls on int’l community, ERC to condemn President’s “irrational and incendiary utterance”
The Opposition – People’s Progressive Party – last Saturday condemned President David Granger’s accusation that the Party is waging “civil war” in Guyana. In a strongly-worded statement, the Party said that it was drawn to the attention of the Leader of the Opposition that “de facto President, Mr David Granger, accused the Opposition of ‘waging civil war’ in the country. He was speaking on a radio programme”. The statement said that the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, unreservedly rejects this allegation and condemns such language since it is as…
Read MoreBisram’s murder trial stalls over State’s unpreparedness
In light of delays in the Marcus Bisram case, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan says it is embarrassing that the State is not ready to prosecute the extradited murder accused, who is charged with orchestrating the murder of a 26-year-old carpenter in 2016. When the case was called up at the Whim Magistrate’s Court, the prosecution indicated that it is not fully prepared to move ahead with the case. The matter was then adjourned to December 9 for the prosecution to submit all files relating to the matter. But on…
Read MoreUS analyst finds SOCU focuses too much on PPP officials, politicians
In his analysis on Guyana’s geopolitical state and its security, United States analyst and author, Dr Evan Ellis, has documented the fact that persons have complained about the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) and its witch hunt against People’s Progressive Party members. According to Ellis, in his publication Journals of America, 3rd edition, SOCU was originally formed as one of the highest-profile elements of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) to investigate persons who were flagged by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). “SOCU has been criticised, however (particularly by the PPP),…
Read MoreJagdeo talks up opportunities for youth in a PPP Govt
Contrary to the coalition Government, which is dominated by senior citizens at the top of the hierarchy, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo is assuring that his party, if elected into Government, will propel youths into positions that will allow their dynamism to bring about real change. Jagdeo was at the time being interviewed on the radio show “Hot Seat” by radio host Curtis Armstrong, popularly known as “DJ Casual” when it was pointed out that the majority of the voting population are youths. “We have always kept our promise to young…
Read MoreProbe continues into rape of 6-yr-old boy
…parents call for perpetrators to be removed from school In light of reports that a 6-year-old pupil of an East Coast Demerara Primary School was sodomised by older boys in the school’s washroom, the parents have come out in solidarity and called for the removal of the perpetrators. The parents turned up in their numbers in front of the school’s premises and voiced their concerns by expressing fear for their children attending the school, where the alleged attack occurred. One parent stated that her child was cut with a razor…
Read MoreSugar workers kept Guyana economically alive during turbulent 1970s and 1980s
Dear Editor, We need big structural changes in Guyana that create new value and we need a grassroots movement to get it done. This is what Team Granger does not understand – they are economically destructive rather than value creative. What Team Granger did to the sugar belt was a failure to do three vital things: improve operations; effectively tap the potential value of the human beings in the industry, and finally, unleash the potential of the assets. The sugar industry in Guyana is a “country within a country” and…
Read MoreScapegoating sugar
Because of its ethnicised workforce due to historical circumstances, the sugar industry has been used by the People’s National Congress (PNC) as a trope for accusing the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) of making decisions based on political or racial considerations, to favour its traditional base. The decision to embark on the Skeldon Modernisation Project, which included a new factory, has been severely criticised by the PNC when in Opposition, conveniently ignoring that the project was approved by all stakeholders including the World Bank (as a lender) and the European Union…
Read MoreDuo to face High Court trial over plot to kill businessman
The proprietor of Rocky’s Hotel and his alleged hired ‘hitman’ who were jointly charged for conspiring to murder a businessman in Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) were on Monday committed to stand trial at the Demerara High Court after a prima facie case was made out against them. Fifty-seven-year-old Mark Grimmond, of Grove Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara (EBD), and Chatterpaul Singh, a 36-year-old miner of First Street, Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara (ECD), were charged with the offence on June 13, 2019. It is alleged that between April…
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