Black Immigrant Daily News

El representante Luis Raúl Torres manifestó en RADIO ISLA que el director ejecutivo de la Autoridad para las Alianzas Público Privadas (AAPP), Fermín Fontanés, “no vive aquí”, sino que “vive en lalalandia”.

Esto, luego de que Fontanés aseguró hoy en este medio que “LUMA está en cumplimiento del contrato”. 

Noticia relacionada: “LUMA está en cumplimiento del contrato”, asegura director ejecutivo de las AAPP 

Luis Raúl Torres insistió en que Fontanés debe renunciar a su cargo. “Fermín Fontanés es un irresponsable, inepto y negligente director de la Autoridad de las Alianzas Público Privadas que debe renunciar. ¡Debe renunciar!”, manifestó Torres. 

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Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley is warning of more disruption to the food supply into next year as a result of droughts in North America, China and other parts of the world.

Speaking to the in-person and virtual audience attending the Agri-Investment Forum and Expo II at the Queen’s Park Savannah, Trinidad, on Friday, Mottley stressed that a reorganisation of plans beyond the medium term, is imperative.

“It, therefore, means that our plans cannot only be medium-term plans to substitute feed, which we must do, as Guyana is planning to do under the distinguished leadership of my brother, President [Dr. Irfaan] Ali by 2025, with corn and soya production being ramped up to scale,” she stated.

Guests in attendance at the Agri-Investment Forum and Expo. (PMO Barbados)

Mottley continued: “We don’t have the luxury of that. Because we have a population that is feeling the vagaries and the negative consequences of rampant inflation. But inflation is going to also reinforce the fact that the lack of access is going to be there because of these droughts.”

Given this expectation, Mottley repeated the urgency for regional farmers to grow six and twelve weeks’ crops and suggested that they also focus on rearing six-weeks’ livestock to meet the needs of the region.

“None of us can avoid the reality that our people must eat. And the reality is, that there are things that we can do and that we have done in our past to ensure survival.

And we are there again. Whether it is rabbits or chickens, whether it is fishing, whether it is new forays as we are doing in Barbados in aquaculture, we have the responsibility for urgent action today,” Mottley proffered.

Since the hosting of the Guyana forum, the Prime Minister shared that regional heads had been asked to formulate a framework for financing. She added that Barbados had worked assiduously with the financiers as well as with regional and international organisations to effect this.

“We’ve written every Minister of Agriculture asking for the projects. Some have started to come in already and they’ll be loaded on the electronic dashboard that will be available for heads to see today. Also on that dashboard will be training support from CARDI…,” Mottley underlined

Mottley also reiterated the importance of tackling the issue of air and maritime transportation, pointing out that regional heads were working on these areas, which she emphasised was a work in progress.

The Expo, which concludes on Sunday, has as its theme: Transforming Agriculture through Innovation and Investment.

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Work is continuing to finalise the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the March 2020 General and Regional elections. In fact, Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall said that efforts are being made to speed up the process.

In an interview with this publication, Nandlall explained that work is ongoing on the ToR that will govern the commissioners, who were named by President Dr Irfaan Ali back in June of this year.

“The formulation of the Terms of Reference of the CoI, the negotiations in relation to the terms and conditions of the members of the CoI, are all work in progress. Hopefully, we are able to resolve those preparatory, but fundamental matters early, so that the business of the commission can begin to proceed,” the AG explained.

“We are dealing with persons who are at different locations. And the terms of reference have some technicalities attached to it. And care has to be exercised in ensuring that the terms of reference are what is required and at the same time, it does not infringe on other processes currently ongoing. What I can tell you, is every effort is being made to have the process move with alacrity.”

The CoI will be chaired by Justice of Appeal (retired) Stanley John of the Turks and Caicos Islands. The other members are former Attorney General, High Court Judge, and acting Justice of Appeal in the Eastern Caribbean, Justice Godfrey P Smith, SC; former Chair and Chief Elections Commissioner of India, Dr S Y Quraishi; and former acting Chancellor of Guyana’s Judiciary, Justice Carl Singh.

Additionally, it has been noted that former Chief Election Commissioner of India, Dr Nasim Zaidi; and Ghanian Election Administrator Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, who was appointed a Commonwealth Advisor to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) leading up to the 2020 elections, will both serve as resource personnel to the CoI.

Each has a track record of distinguished adjudication while leading major reforms and innovation to achieve efficiency in the business of resolving disputes.

Godfrey Phillip Smith, SC, has also served as Minister of Tourism & National Emergency Management, Minister of Foreign Affairs & Foreign Trade, Attorney General & Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Chief of Staff of the Office of the Prime Minister of Belize, and a Member of the House of Representatives.

Among the numerous posts Dr Quraishi has held were: Chief Election Commissioner of India, July 2010 – June 2012, Election Commissioner of India, June 2006 – July 2010 and Secretary, Govt of India Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, 2005 – 2006. He is also credited for founding the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management, from which more than 75 countries have received training within five years.

More recently, he was a member of the Board of Advisors of International IDEA (Institute of Democracy and Electoral Assistance) Stockholm for 9 years (2012-2021). Dr Quraishi was nominated to be a Global Ambassador of Democracy alongside Kofi Annan by International IDEA Stockholm in Oct 2018.

Lastly, retired Chancellor Carl Singh has held several key positions following his admission to the Bar in 1982. He fulfilled the roles of Magistrate – 1983, Land Court Judge – 1988, High Court Judge – 1995, and Court of Appeal – 2000. In 2001, Retired Chancellor (ag) Carl Singh was appointed Chief Justice, and from 2005-2017 he served as acting Chancellor of the Judiciary.

The retired Chancellor (ag) also served as the Chairman of the Advisory Council to the President of Guyana on National Honours from 2005-2017. From 2017-2019, he served as a Professor of Law and Head of the Department of Law, University of Guyana.Following a largely smooth polling day on March 2, 2020, Guyana was thrown into a tumultuous five-month political and electoral impasse after the then incumbent APNU/AFC regime attempted to steal the election.

It was found during a subsequent national recount process that former Returning Officer for Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), Clairmont Mingo had heavily inflated the votes in favour of the coalition party.

Since the election fiasco unfolded, several persons that served within the apparatus of GECOM have already been charged with electoral fraud. These include former Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield, former Deputy CEO Roxanne Myers, former PNCR Minister Volda Lawrence, and Mingo, among others.

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Danuta and Vanda Radzik and Raphael Singh, who are residents of Houston, East Bank Demerara (EBD), have filed legal action against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over the waiver of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) granted to Schlumberger Guyana, one of ExxonMobil’s (Guyana) major subcontractors, which operate out of premises located at Lot 1, Area X, Houston.

Besides the EPA, these residents, hereinafter referred to as the applicants, have listed the Environmental Protection Board (EBA) and Schlumberger as respondents in the action filed on their behalf by Attorneys-at-Law Siand Dhurjon, Ronald Burch-Smith and Maylene Alleyne.

The applicants have said that, in late April 2021, they discovered that Schlumberger was proposing to construct a storage facility for radioactive substances at its current location, and that the EPA had waived the need for the company to do an EIA for the proposed project.

Contending that the project puts their health and community at significant risk, as the permit contains no provisions that regulate how Schlumberger is to ensure that the facility is safe for the storage and use of radioactive substances, they are asking the court to declare that the EPA’s decision to waive the requirement for an EIA is in breach of its statutory duty; is contrary to natural justice; is arbitrary, ultra vires and without any legal foundation; and should therefore be quashed.

Given that Houston and the immediate environs include residential areas where hundreds of people live, and the area for the facility is close to schools and places of worship, the applicants are contending that the EPA should have consulted with residents before waiving an EIA for a project of this nature.

The applicants have said that it was not until April 11, 2021 that the EPA had issued a public notice, via the press, which stated that Schlumberger had applied for an environmental authorisation. The notice which was published in the Guyana Chronicle, they added, further stated: “It has been determined that the proposed project will not significantly affect the environment or human health, and is therefore exempt from the requirement for an Environmental Impact Assessment.”

The notice also said the public could appeal against the EPA’s decision within 30 days.“The notice was vague and deficient in detail, and omitted significant relevant details about the nature and scope of the proposed facility. The project summary was effectively concealed from the public, and not made readily available to persons who may have concerns,” the applicants have deposed.

In protesting the EPA’s decisions, the applicants are questioning the basis on which it concluded that an impact study was not required for the project.

The residents’ primary argument is that radioactive materials should not be used and/or be located close to neighbourhoods, schools, a main highway, or the Demerara River. Relying on Section 11 of the Environmental Protection Act, the applicants have pointed out that an impact assessment is required for any project that may significantly affect the environment, and that such an assessment should be publicised, and that members of the public should be consulted.

The applicants have submitted that the EAB has refused to consider their appeal against the decision to waive the EIA, and has provided legalistic and inadequate reasons for its decision. While grilling the EPA’s decision, they said, the EPA informed them that it had used a screening tool it had developed, but it has refused to disclose the form and content of this tool, or how it had been applied.

According to these applicants, the EPA has a “track record” of unreasonable and irrational actions regarding applications for EIA relating to the oil and gas industry. The applicants complain that the EPA lacks resources, and has no interest in regulating radioactive facilities according to international best practices. This, they noted, is critical, given the absence of an adequate national regulatory framework that specifically deals with industrial radioactive sources. They add that the project is part of the unlawful industrialisation of Houston and its environs.

In the circumstances, they contend that EPA has a statutory duty to require an EIA for any activity which may cause an adverse effect on the natural environment.

The EIA process, the applicants highlighted, is outlined in the Environmental Protection Act and the Constitution of Guyana, which guarantees environmental rights and democracy, specifically Article 149 (J) of the Constitution, which establishes that “everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to his or her health or wellbeing.”

Since the facility has already been constructed, the applicants have been granted permission to amend their action to target the operation of the facility being used for the storage of radioactive materials. High Court Judge Nareshwar Harnanan will rule on the case on September 23.

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Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre told reporters on the sidelines of a Cabinet meeting on Monday that Police Commissioner Milton Desir’s contract finishes at year-end.

“The Commissioner of Police – his contract is finishing in December. There will be a new Acting Commissioner of Police,” Pierre disclosed, without going into detail.

The Prime Minister, responsible for National Security, made the remarks while responding to a question regarding a shake-up in the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF).

‘No,’ was his response.

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Asked about renewing Desir’s contract, Pierre merely repeated that the Commissioner’s contract ends in December.

Pressed on the matter, the Prime Minister again said the Commissioner’s contract ends in December.

Milton Desir has spent some 35 years in the force.

In September 2020, he had proceeded on pre-retirement leave after serving as Deputy Commissioner.

But he was recalled to duty as Deputy Commissioner and subsequently appointed head of the force in February 2021, succeeding Severin Moncherry.

But with a continued spike in gun violence, his effectiveness at the head of the RSLPF has been called into question.

So far this year, Saint Lucia has recorded 43 homicides.

In February this year, Prime Minister Pierre held an emergency meeting with police top brass.

The emergency meeting followed four 4 reported homicides and gun violence in one weekend.

At the gathering, Pierre committed to providing the police with the resources and training opportunities they need to fight crime.

However, he also challenged the executive officers to employ innovative strategies, professionalism, and proactiveness in their work.

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