Letter: President Ali has taken Guyana to new heights

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: INews Guyana
President Dr. Irfaan Ali at the launch of the national census

Dear Editor,

Since taking office in August 2020, President Ali and his administration have taken Guyana to new heights never reached before with his numerous visits to the ten regions and to almost every village and district in the country to meet with the people. In all his visits, he has not only outlined his development strategies for the country, but he has taken the time to meet with the residents and address their problems, which have lifted the spirits of the citizens. Many felt that President Ali is genuine when he said that everyone has a meaningful and vital role to play in the development of the country and that no one will be left behind, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion or party affiliation. He has told the nation that the time has come for us not to see one another as Indo-Guyanese, Afro-Guyanese or Amerindian but as Guyanese with one destiny and a country to build.

His recent announcement alongside the British High Commissioner to Guyana that Guyanese will no longer need a visa to travel to Britain speaks volumes in that it settled a long-standing issue between Guyana and Britain. It is my understanding that it was President Ali who initiated the negotiation with the British Government. It was the belief that as a former British colony, Guyanese should be allowed to travel to London without visas. This has been the case of Canada, New Zealand and Australia—all former colonies of Great Britain whose citizens were not required to obtain visas to travel to London. Guyana has joined the other CARICOM states of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bahamas and Grenada whose residents do not require visas to travel to Britain.

With oil revenue at over one billion dollars, President Ali has publicly stated that the money will be used wisely and prudently to benefit all Guyanese by modernizing the infrastructure, invest in education, health care, security, the judiciary and social services, among others.

In addition, President Ali should be given credit for his vision to establish the 1000-men programme which will bring together men from across the country to address the challenges faced by them, especially youths who make up more than 60 percent of the country’s population. Headed by the President, the 1000-men programme will encourage adults and youths to turn away from crimes and violence and become responsible, good, decent and productive citizens and take their rightful place in society.

The 1000-men program will address domestic violence, hunger and poverty, education or the lack thereof and the indulgence and sale of illegal drugs. It is a positive approach to help men and youths accept their responsibility and become leaders in society. Many are of the opinion that the 1000-men programme initiated by President Ali fits well with his “one Guyana” initiative which is aimed at healing the racial divide, unite the races and for us as Guyanese to become “our brothers’ and sisters’ keeper. The phrase is a reference to the Biblical story of Cain and Abel from the book of Genesis. It is generally understood to mean being responsible for the welfare of a brother or other sibling or, by extension, for other human beings in general.

The President has said many times that while each of us is responsible for our own actions we are also responsible for the well-being of our neighbors. He enunciated that too frequently we focus on ourselves while forgetting that God has created us to live together and that our own well-being is bound forever to the well-being of everyone. He knows that while everyone needs proper education, secure housing, adequate nutrition, and reliable healthcare, they are not luxuries. They are what is due to those who have worked hard and to those who cannot care for themselves. President Ali “One Guyana” initiative is a bold plan that will inspire everyone to live in peace and harmony, support each other and be involved in the development and prosperity of the country.

Sincerely,Dr Asquith Rose

NewsAmericasNow.com

Poutine supervise l’entraînement de ses forces de dissuasion nucléaire

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: Guadeloupe FranceAntilles

Le président russe Vladimir Poutine a supervisé mercredi l’entraînement de ses forces de dissuasion nucléaires au moment où Moscou a répété à l’Inde et à la Chine ses allégations sur…

Le président russe Vladimir Poutine a supervisé mercredi l’entraînement de ses forces de dissuasion nucléaires au moment où Moscou a répété à l’Inde et à la Chine ses allégations sur la préparation par l’Ukraine d’une “bombe sale”.

Kiev, qui dément toute velléité d’utiliser une telle arme, et ses alliés occidentaux redoutent que de telles accusations ne servent de prétexte à Moscou pour une escalade du conflit ou à l’usage d’armes nucléaires par la Russie, dont les responsables ont menacé à plusieurs reprises de le faire en cas de menace importante.

Vladimir Poutine a assisté mercredi depuis une salle de contrôle à cet entraînement des forces russes de dissuasion stratégique, soit des troupes chargées notamment de répondre à la menace en cas de guerre nucléaire. Si ce type d’exercice est mené périodiquement, celui-ci intervient en pleine offensive russe en Ukraine.

“Sous la direction du commandant suprême des forces armées, Vladimir Poutine, les forces de dissuasion stratégique terrestres, maritimes et aériennes ont mené un entraînement et des lancements pratiques de missiles balistiques et de croisière ont été effectués”, a indiqué le Kremlin.

La télévision russe a montré l’équipage d’un sous-marin préparer le lancement d’un missile depuis la mer de Barents dans l’Arctique. L’exercice a aussi impliqué des avions à long rayon d’action Tu-95.

“Les tâches fixées lors de l’exercice d’entraînement à la dissuasion stratégique ont été accomplies dans leur intégralité, tous les missiles ayant atteint leur cible”, a poursuivi le Kremlin.

“Menace existante”

Peu avant ces manoeuvres, la Russie a réitéré auprès de la Chine et de l’Inde ses accusations selon lesquelles l’Ukraine se préparerait à utiliser une “bombe sale”, une arme constituée d’explosifs conventionnels entourés de matériaux radioactifs destinés à être disséminés lors de l’explosion.

Lors d’une conversation avec le ministre chinois de la Défense Wei Fenghe, son homologue russe Sergueï Choïgou a fait part de ses “préoccupations liées à d’éventuelles provocations de la part de l’Ukraine avec recours à une +bombe sale+”.

La Russie avait avancé pour la première fois ces accusations dimanche lors de conversations téléphoniques entre Sergueï Choïgou et ses homologues américain, français, britannique et turc.

M. Choïgou a soulevé les mêmes “inquiétudes” lors d’un appel avec son homologue indien Rajnath Singh.

L’Ukraine et les Occidentaux ont dénoncé des allégations “absurdes” et “dangereuses” et suggéré que la Russie se préparait elle-même à une escalade sur le champ de bataille, où ses troupes ont connu une série de défaites depuis septembre.

Le porte-parole du Kremlin, Dmitri Peskov, a assuré mercredi que la Russie disposait d’informations sur une “menace existante” de l’utilisation par l’Ukraine d’une “bombe sale” et que Kiev “se prépare à un tel acte terroriste de sabotage”. 

“Nous continuerons à faire valoir vigoureusement notre point de vue auprès de la communauté internationale afin de l’encourager à prendre des mesures actives pour empêcher un tel comportement irresponsable”, a ajouté M. Peskov.

Les responsables russes ont menacé à plusieurs reprises d’utiliser l’arme nucléaire pour défendre les territoires dont Moscou a revendiqué l’annexion en Ukraine, y compris à Kherson, dans le sud, où est attendue la prochaine bataille.

70.000 évacués

Les autorités d’occupation russe de Kherson ont annoncé mercredi avoir évacué 70.000 civils en une semaine de cette ville transformée en forteresse pour faire face à l’assaut ukrainien à venir.

Ailleurs sur le front, au moins sept personnes ont été tuées et 13 blessées ces dernières 24 heures, selon le décompte de la présidence ukrainienne.

La Russie a multiplié ces dernières semaines les frappes sur les infrastructures électriques ukrainiennes, provoquant des coupures de courant dans de nombreuses villes, y compris à Kiev.

L’opérateur Ukrenergo a ainsi poursuivi pour le deuxième jour consécutif les restrictions en électricité pour les entreprises et particuliers.

Kiev a également annoncé mercredi un nouvel échange de prisonniers avec Moscou concernant 10 soldats ukrainiens. La Russie a aussi rendu le corps du volontaire américain Joshua Alan Jones, tué en août au combat.

bur/am

Carte d’Ukraine pointant les combats ayant fait des victimes depuis le début du conflit le 24 février, selon l’ONG Acled
• Anibal MAIZ CACERES

Des civils évacués de Kherson, dans le sud de l’Ukraine, temporairement installés dans la ville de Dzankoi, en Crimée, le 26 octobre 2022
• STRINGER

NewsAmericasNow.com

Mike Birch, premier vainqueur de la Route du Rhum est décédé à l’âge de 90 ans

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: Guadeloupe FranceAntilles

Le canadien Mike Birch, premier vainqueur de la Route du Rhum en 1978 s’est éteint dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi, à l’âge de 90 ans

Mike Birch a tiré son dernier bord dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi et c’est toute la Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe qui est en deuil. 

 Une minute de silence sera respectée sur le village de la course en son hommage à 17h, au moment de l’inauguration. La photo du marin sera projetée sur les remparts de Saint-Malo, ce soir et jusqu’au départ des skippers dimanche 6 novembre. 

Un personnage à la Jack London

Avant la course au large, Mike Birch avait convoyé des bateaux, apprenant un métier de marin qui était loin d’être sa première vocation. Né à Vancouver, il fût tour à tour mineur, ouvrier dans le pétrole, cow-boy, avant de poser un autre regard sur l’horizon. « Un personnage de roman » résumait ce matin Thomas Coville qui avait tiré des bords avec lui sur le trimaran ORMA Fujicolor dans les années 1990. 

C’est pourtant à 44 ans que Mike Birch s’aligne au départ de sa première transat, la redoutable édition 1976 de l’OSTAR entre Plymouth et Newport. Il enchaînera sur sa victoire dans la Route du Rhum 1978 et construira ensuite plusieurs multicoques sur plans Nigel Irens.

Le petit 50 pieds Vital d’abord puis Formule Tag, grand catamaran de 26 mètres qui lui offrit la victoire dans Monaco New-York en 1985. Vinrent ensuite les années ORMA, ces trimarans de 18,28 m sur lesquels Mike s’est adjugé par deux fois la troisième place sur la Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe.

La reine des transats était bel et bien indissociable de la vie du marin, lui qui s’aligna sept fois au départ. « Le décès de Mike Birch est un évènement qui nous marque, au sein de l’organisation de la Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe disait ce matin Joseph Bizard, Directeur Général d’OC Sport Pen Duick. 

NewsAmericasNow.com

Les meilleurs temps de la Route du Rhum

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: Guadeloupe FranceAntilles

FA

Voici les meilleurs temps jamais réalisés sur la Route du Rhum, toutes éditions confondues.

1 / Francis Joyon / 7j 14h 21min 47sec (2018)

2 / François Gabart / 7j 14h 28min 55sec (2018)

3 / Loïck Peyron / 7j 15h 08min 32sec (2014)

4 / Lionel Lemonchois / 7j 17h 19min 06sec (2006)

5 / Pascal Bidégorry / 8j 04h 25min 07sec (2006)

6 / Yann Guichard / 8j 05h 18min 46sec (2014)

7 / Thomas Coville / 8j 13h 39min 02sec (2006)

8 / Michel Desjoyeaux / 8j 13h 48min 24sec (2006)

9 / Sébastien Josse / 8j 14h 47min 09sec (2014)

10 / Lionel Lemonchois / 8j 17h 44min 50sec (2014)

NewsAmericasNow.com

New CMO pushing for evidence-based public health Loop Cayman Islands

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: Cayman Compass

The new Chief Medical Officer for the Cayman Islands, Dr Nick Gent, has hit the ground running after taking officer on 10 October. He has been kept busy with introductions, meetings, presentations and several media appearances.

Dr Gent’s appointment coincided with the rollout of the Moderna (bivalent) COVID-19 fall booster campaign, so within days of his arrival, the CMO was making his rounds on talk shows to share his knowledge, answer questions, and encourage Cayman’s most vulnerable to take the booster.

As Cayman transitions to living safely and responsibly with COVID-19, the new CMO’s vision is rooted in ensuring that the lessons of the pandemic are not forgotten.

“My main duty as the Chief Medical Officer is to help the Ministry of Health and Wellness and Cabinet to develop good, evidence-based public health policy that will withstand the next 10 to 20 years,” Dr Gent stated, noting that while his contract is for three years his aim is to lay a foundation that will last beyond his tenure.

Strengthening public health nationally is a priority for the Ministry of Health and Wellness, and Dr Gent sees this goal being achieved through several key actions: strengthening local epidemiology services, acquiring data to determine the actual state of health of the population and setting up systems to ensure continuous monitoring of that information, introducing data-driven interventions and programming to help improve the lives and wellness of Caymanians and residents, and “getting the core of public health right”.

“When we talk about the core of public health, we are talking about high immunisation rates, good screening rates, healthy lifestyle and good clinical care access. We need to take stock of where we are and make sure that the basics are right,” Dr Gent added.

Sabrina Turner, Minister for Health and Wellness, who introduced Dr Gent to Cabinet on 18 October, expressed her enthusiasm about having the new CMO join her Ministry.

“Having Dr Gent on the team is an exciting milestone for us at the Ministry of Health and Wellness as we continue to reach our strategic broad outcomes and the big project of improving and strengthening public health nationally,” Turner said.

NewsAmericasNow.com

Business and consumer confidence up Loop Jamaica

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: Jamaica News Loop News

Business confidence for the third quarter of 2022 improved by 18.3 per cent, with consumer confidence also showing a positive trajectory, increasing by 4.2 percentage points.

The findings of the latest quarterly review by the Jamaica Conference Board Survey of Business and Consumer Confidence were presented by pollster Don Anderson, CEO of Market Research Services Limited, on behalf of the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday.

A total of 648 consumers and 110 businesses were polled.

While business confidence is still not back to the pre-pandemic level of 151.3 points reported in 2019, Anderson said the feedback from business interests showed a “significant positive outlook on the economy, their own businesses and the general business environment.”

Interestingly, 25.4 per cent of businesses surveyed expect their profits to be better than originally anticipated. This represents an increase from the 14 per cent of businesses that expressed similar sentiments in 2021 within the same period.

Comparatively, in the third quarter of 2021, 43 per cent of businesses said that they felt that profits would be worse than expected. But that number fell to 18.6 per cent for the current period, Anderson reported, describing the finding as a “dramatic reduction.”

The investment climate is also viewed far more favourably, with businesses again feeling “bullish” about investing, the survey found.

“Generally, businesses are feeling pretty buoyant about where they are and their future,” Anderson said, noting the 61 per cent of businesses that said it is a good time to invest and expand.

Of note, the finance, insurance, real estate and business services sectors will likely see investments, as 60 per cent of the firms involved in these sectors said they intend to invest over the next 12 months.

The agriculture sector ranked second, with 58.3 per cent keen on investing.

Their sentiments about the economy also improved. In the third quarter of 2021, 52 per cent of businesses felt that the economy would improve, but for this year, 55.1 per cent said they expected business conditions to improve.

Their confidence is buoyed by the belief that the pandemic is over, Anderson said.

“So, there is a positive trajectory…businesses are feeling better about the economy even though the number who felt that the economy would worsen increased marginally from 11.4 per cent to 12.7 per cent.

This is counteracted by the increase in those who said the economy is likely to be better,” he reported.

Business confidence is also premised on their faith in the government policies being put in place, the uptick in the tourism sector and the improvements in the production sector, among others.

On the downside, the high crime rate continues to be a concern for the business community, with 13 per cent of companies reporting that they expect the economy to worsen.

The continued price increases and the instability in the foreign exchange market also remain sore points.

On the consumer side, more people are confident now than they were in the second quarter of this year. In addition, more people believe the economy will get better than those who believe it will get worse.

More people also thought job availability has improved, with 35.2 per cent having a more positive outlook over the 25.6 per cent who expressed this sentiment in the comparative period of 2021.

“We are seeing a continuation of positives in the minds of the consumers,” Anderson said, noting a general optimism among consumers.

Additionally, the percentage of consumers who felt their income would improve also moved to 50 per cent for the period compared with 30.5 per cent who said this in the comparative 2021 period.

However, despite the positive outlook, there is a marginal increase in consumers’ purchase plans.

“Although consumers are more buoyant and confident about the economy they are also recognising that there are constraints that need to be applied,” Anderson said of the data analysis.

Just 29.3 per cent of those surveyed said they were likely to take a vacation. Fewer people were also keen on buying homes. That figure dropped from 10.6 per cent of respondents in Q3 of 2021 to 8.8 per cent.

Consumer outlook for the next 12 months, however, showed signs of optimism, with 34 per cent of respondents reporting that they expect the economy to be better because more businesses are opening up.

Meanwhile, the most important and largest single reason they stated; the pandemic is receding; there are signs of recovery in the economy, and they have some level of trust in the government’s policies.

Conversely, the survey found that 23 per cent of consumers said they expected business conditions to worsen in the next 12 months due to the high cost of living and crime rate. They also felt that the government is not doing enough to spur the economy and that the lack of employment and high inflation also spelt gloom.

Consumers also pointed to the impact of inflation on the cost of goods and services over the last year, with 87per cent of respondents noting that prices have increased significantly.

“They are telling us that they are facing a headwind in terms of increased prices over the last year, which they expect to continue,” Anderson said.

NewsAmericasNow.com

Charrandass Persaud axed by Pres. Ali over obscene outburst in India

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: INews Guyana
Charrandass Persaud

Guyana’s High Commissioner to India Charrandass Persaud will be recalled following the circulation of a video which shows him verbally abusing a woman at his official residence in India.

President Dr Irfaan Ali moments ago announced that he had a conversation with Persaud on the issue during which he [Persaud] accepted full responsibility for his actions and agreed to return home.

President Ali said the Guyana Government will now take all official steps and measures to ensure a smooth transition.

The President elaborated that during his discussion with Persaud, he emphasised the importance of representatives of Guyana conducting themselves in the highest regard.

He also reiterated that the issue in question, which occurred in August 2021, was already dealt with by the relevant agencies in India during which no evidence of misconduct was found.

The Head of State also noted that the video in circulation does not completely demonstrate what transpired.

Notwithstanding, the Head of State posited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Guyana Government will continue to work to strengthen its relationship with India and every partner across the globe.

In this regard, he said it is in the “best interest” that Persaud return home.

In the video, Persaud is heard telling the woman: “You probably want the dog to f**k you, that is what you want. And I don’t care. I don’t care who you are…f**k you.”

The video has been making its rounds on social media but this publication understands that the incident occurred since August 2021.

Following the rapid circulation of the video on Tuesday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation released a statement on the incident.

See full statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation: 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is aware of material circulating on social media relating to allegations made against His Excellency Charrandass Persaud, High Commissioner of Guyana to India regarding an incident which occurred on August 1, 2021 on the premises of the High Commissioner’s residence.

This matter, brought to the attention of the Ministry of External Affairs of India by High Commissioner Persaud, was fully investigated by the relevant authorities and a formal response to the High Commission dated September 3, 2022 indicates that “allegations of sexual abusive words to complainant has [sic] not been substantiated”.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation therefore considers this matter closed.

NewsAmericasNow.com

No electoral advantage for political parties with proposed changes to RoPA – AG

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: INews Guyana
Attorney General Anil Nandlall

Proposed amendments to the Representation of the People Act (RoPA) that are currently the subject of national stakeholder consultations, are in no way, shape or form intended to give any political party an advantage at the polls.

This is according to Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, when he led presentations during national consultations on electoral reforms that began at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) On Tuesday.

Nandlall stressed that these reforms are not intended to give any political party an electoral advantage. On the contrary, he pointed out that these reforms are much needed changes to the system and are good for democracy.

“The important thing that I want to emphasise here, is that there is not a single proposal on these pieces of paper that are intended to create an electoral advantage for any political party. And I want to stress and emphasise that 100 times,” Nandlall said.

“I’ve said also that if there is any person who can point to me or to us as a collective, a particular provision that creates an electoral advantage for any political party, we are prepared to engage and engage publicly too. The point I’m making is that these reforms are good for the system. They are good for the process. They are good for the country. They are good for democracy.”

The AG went on to give an example of one of the proposed amendments to the Representation of the People Act, which would not favour one party over another. For instance, Section 6 (11) of the RoPA (Amendment) Bill 2022 caps the number of electors that can be assigned to a particular polling station.

“So, there’s a limit. No more than 400 electors are to be assigned to a polling station. No more. You can have less. So right away, you put a cap. So, we don’t have electors lining up in the hot sun. I want you to interrogate this and tell me if it creates any political advantage for any political party.”

“The sun only shines in PPP areas? Or the rain doesn’t fall in certain areas? It’s right across the board. It’s to make electors comfortable, to make voting easy, to give greater accessibility to polling places and polling stations,” Nandlall also said.

Among the issues raised by the attendees was the subdivision of regions. According to Section 6 (A) of the Bill, the polling districts of Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) and Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne Region) will be divided.

Opposition nominated Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Commissioner Vincent Alexander argued that this should only be the case in the hinterland, where for the sake of efficiency the districts could be broken up.

“I will argue that if one is speaking about efficiency, then that subdivisions are more pertinent in the hinterland regions (because) these regions have subdistricts that cannot move results overnight,” he said.

However, Nandlall reminded him of the calamitous events that took place in the Region Four polling district during the 2020 General and Regional Election and reminded him that efficiency is not the only consideration. Nandlall noted that this proposed change is to prevent one electoral officer from having too much power over the most populous electoral districts.

The consultation being undertaken has been described as an integral element of the Government of Guyana’s commitment to implement a consultative, inclusive, and participatory process regarding electoral reform.

The Ministry had said in a previous statement that the stakeholder consultation formed part of a continuous consultative process, which began on November 6, 2021, when the Ministry published the draft RoPA (Amendment) Bill on its social media pages.

As such, the public was invited to peruse the draft documents and submit feedback to the Ministry within six weeks; however, after requests for extensions, the Ministry accommodated submissions of feedback well into 2022.

Recommendations were received from a variety of stakeholders including civil society actors, the Guyana Elections Commission, some political parties, and interested individuals and organisations. These recommendations were consolidated and provided to the Attorney General, who in May 2022, facilitated in-person meetings with the respondents.

Updated versions of the RoPA Bill and Regulations have been made available once again, and the new draft amendments to the National Registration Act have also been made accessible for public perusal via a link published on the Ministry’s Facebook pages. To this end, 157 organisations were invited to the consultation on October 25.

These organisations represent a broad cross-section of society including political parties; constitutional bodies; civil society organisations in the labour movement; private sector, faith-based, youth, women, LGBTQ, ethnic/cultural, health and rehabilitation organisations; and other civil society actors.

NewsAmericasNow.com

Constitutional reform process to begin early next year

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: INews Guyana
Parliament of Guyana

The constitutional reform process, which will be spearheaded by the Constitutional Reform Commission once it is set up, will begin early next year and will allow stakeholders to make suggestions on much-needed areas of reform in the Constitution.

Making this revelation was Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Minister Gail Teixeira, during the start of national consultations on amendments to the Representation of the People Act (RoPA).

At the consultation which took place on Tuesday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), Teixeira took care to stress that the consultations on RoPA are separate from constitutional reform consultations that will begin early in 2023.

“This process that we’re going through today, which is dealing with electoral laws and amendments to statutes, is distinctly separate from the constitutional reform process which will commence in early 2023.”

“That Bill, for the commission for constitutional reform, which will be made up equally of members of political parties and civil society, is already on the order paper,” Teixeira further explained.

One of the attendees at Tuesday’s consultations, Opposition-nominated Commissioner on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Vincent Alexander had questioned whether electoral amendments would not clash with the constitutional reform process that will be embarked on next year.

However, Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, had noted that statutory electoral reform cannot wait on constitutional reforms, which is a lengthy process that requires a two-thirds majority to effect changes.

“We can’t stop the legislative agenda of the country because constitutional reform is impending. That would be a horrible thing to do… Mr Alexander is experienced enough to know the complexities associated with constitutional reform. The political complexities flow therefrom and the consequential time that would be consumed by that process to arrive at consensus.”

Constitutional reform of any significant aspect in our constitutional matrix, requires two thirds majority, on any provision of substance… are we to stall our statutory agenda and await that? The country would grind to a halt,” Nandlall explained.

Back in August of this year, the Government had presented the Constitution Reform Commission Bill 2022 in the National Assembly, which seeks the establishment of a Constitution Reform Commission to review the country’s supreme laws.

According to the provisions of the Bill, the commission will review the Constitution to provide for the current and future rights, duties, liabilities, and obligations of the Guyanese people. It is mandated for that purpose to receive, consider and evaluate submissions for the alteration of the Constitution, and report its recommendations to the standing committee for transmission to the National Assembly.

In conducting the review, the commission will also consider the full protection of the fundamental rights of and freedom of Guyanese under law, the rights of Indigenous people of Guyana, the rights of children, eliminating discrimination in all forms, and improving ethnic relations while promoting ethnic security and equal opportunity.

According to the explanatory memorandum of the Bill, the proposed Constitutional Reform Commission will consist of 20 members who will be drawn from the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), the Opposition A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) and one member from political party A New and United Guyana (ANUG).

One member each will also be drawn from the Guyana Bar Association, the Labour Movement, the National Toshaos Council, the private sector, representatives of women organisations, youth organisations, Christian, Hindu and Muslim organisations, as well as a nominee representing farmers.

NewsAmericasNow.com

Berbice ‘stray catchers’ continue to operate despite unit being disbanded

/0 Comments/in /by

Black Immigrant Daily News

The content originally appeared on: INews Guyana
The goats being taken to the pound on Monday

Stray catchers on the Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) continue to operate despite the unit being disbanded.

Farmers in the 52-74 Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) community continue to have their animals picked up by a group of young men and taken to various pounds which are under the control of that NDC.

Some farmers have been able to strike deals with the men and sometimes an NDC official before the animals are taken to the pound to have them released for a cost lesser than the stipulated fee of $7000 and $8000 for adult animals.

Receipts are not issued when those deals are made, this publication has been told by farmers. On Monday, the 52-74 NDC officials took a number of animals to the pound.

Only recently Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had to intervene after the 52-74 NDC illegally impounded cattle belonging to a Corentyne farmer after stray catchers had reportedly picked up the animals from a dam.

However, on Monday stray catchers were caught on camera picking up animals that were under a tree and taking them to a pound which is under the control of the NDC.According to Budmattie Boodram, she was alerted by her husband of the incident.

“Yesterday [Monday] when my husband went to the backdam like about 1:30 we lose our goat and he gone with some goat on the backdam because rice finish harvesting in the whole Number Naught Village so we graze our goat there. My husband called me about 2 o’clock and tell me something is not right,” the woman related.

She said she went just beyond the residential area where the animals are normally taken to graze and saw some of her goats sitting under a tree but as she continued to walk, she heard the sound of a motorcycle approaching.

“When me watch, me see they get like about four pound man and each one of them get cutlass and my husband was not there and I was very scared.” One of the four men waited with the animals which were under the tree. Video recordings seen by this publication support Boodram’s claim.

“Me see when he take out dem other goat from the Number Naught side where no rice was not there – everything cut out; me even video am how they take out the goat and walk and drive an carry them straight to the jamoon tree and collect the other set and gone with them,” the woman revealed.

22 heads of goat were taken to the Number 63 Village pound and the family was told they would have to pay $7000 each to have them released.

Meanwhile, according to one cattle farmer, if they pay $5000 each to these illegal stray catchers, the animals are released and if not, they are taken to the NDC’s pound.Sometimes the money is paid to an NDC official but no receipts are issued.

Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn had revoked all of the stray catchers’ licences as government had put a hold on the impounding of animals by NDCs and municipalities.Some of those persons have been hired by the NDC under Government’s part-time employment.

Boodram said they did not have the money to pay for the release of the animals and contacted a political activist in the region to get assistance.

The political activist told this newspaper that he contacted a senior Government official, who intervened and the animals were released.

According to the activist, the 52-74 NDC should pay more attention on addressing the concerns of residents, which includes the deplorable streets and garbage collection.

“Not to be engaged in the pounding of animals. It is a simple process, if your animal destroys someone’s crop you get the Police and a Rural Constable (RC) and you press for damages; that’s the way to go,” the activist explained.

It was only recently that another farmer had an issue where his cattle were illegally impounded. Following the intervention of Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo those animals were released.

NewsAmericasNow.com