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April 8, 2015
PAGE 1
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
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VOL. 9, NO. 07 • April 8, 2015
Website: www.caribbeangraphic.ca • Tel: 905.831-4402 • Fax: 416.292.2943 • Email: caribbeangraphic@rogers.com
Bigger Venue Chosen For Granger’s Visit!
Calling
T All Bandleaders
he venue for
David Granger’s
and Moses Nagamootoo’s scheduled
April 19 Toronto meeting has been changed.
the APNU-AFC
Coalition’s quest
to overthrow the
ruling PPP/Civic’s reign as Guyana’s governing
Party, which it
has held for the
past twentytwo years,
has attracted
increasingly
widespread
multi-racial
support among
Guyanese, both
at home and
abroad.
The April 19
meeting will
allow the Granger and Nagamootoo, as the APNU-AFC’s
two dynamic leaders, the op-
Come take advantage of our Carnival Craziness
Special Advertising Rates to promote your 2013
Mas Bands
In expectation of a massive
turnout the event’s organizers have changed the meeting’s location to the more
spacious Elite Banquet Hall,
1850 Albion Rd. The event
was initially scheduled to be
held at the Pickering Pentecostal Church.
David Granger and Moses
Nagamootoo are the recently
formed APNU-AFC Coalition’s
respective Presidential and
Prime Ministerial Candidates
for Guyana’s upcoming May
11 National Elections. Under
its Time For Change theme,
Enjoy 50% Discounts off our Regular
Community Rates on any ads booked from
April 12 – July 16, 2013.
portunity to share their vision
of Guyana’s new and exciting
future. The day’s Agenda,
which gets underway at 1:30
pm and runs until 6:00 pm,
will include a Brunch and Cultural Program. A $50 donation
is required for admission.
Island Mix Celebrating 10 Years As
Pickering’s Hottest Restaurant & Bar
All ads are full colour.
someone, Island Mix is the place
to be. As its motto warmly welcomes “Come Taste The Mix!”
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Pickering (1050 Brock
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since 2005. Within the past
What makes Island Mix
unique is that over the past 10
years its four man Management Team: Kemol Mohamed,
Sunil Harricharan, Kemel
and Kevin Yusef, has listened
to their customers. Not only
welcoming suggestions, but
also more importantly taking
complaints very seriously.
Their inclination has been to
treat complaints as opportunities - to do a much better job
at satisfying their customers.
Embracing the philosophy
that Change is Good, Island
Mix’s Management has been
forever strategizing in an
ongoing effort to make their
Restaurant & Lounge a better
place. Menu items, entertainment even the Restaurant’s
ambiance and décor have all
been continuously adjusted in
an ongoing effort to offer customers the best, most enjoyable
experience possible.
Island Mix’s 10th Anniversary celebration activities
will include an April 16 Mix It
Up Thursday, April 17 TGIF:
Thank God Its Friday, a Saturday April18 star studded Dejays Party and a Sunday April
19 Comedy Mix. For complete
details visit http://islandmix.
ca/island-mix-pickering.
C
Bo
co
To
yo
ca
1/2 Page
10 X 7.25
ten years Island Mix Restaurant
& Lounge has become the place
to socialize and relax with family
and friends for any occasion.
Whether it be for a place to go
for lunch, enjoy a family dinner,
cater a special occasion or just
have a drink with that special
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PAGE 2
Toronto Star’s
George Haim Pays
Tribute To Our Zick
H
undreds of grieving
friends and family attended the Memorial
Service that was recently held in
celebration of Albert Isaacs’ life.
The following is an edited version of George Haim’s penned
tribute to this outstanding Guyanese, that was published in the
Toronto Star’s April 5 edition.
If you fly with Porter Airlines, there’s
a greater than 50 per cent chance the
man who taught your captain how to fly
your airplane was Albert Isaacs, fondly
known to his friends and family as
simply Zick.
“Fire is for cooking and ice is for
drinks,” he often told students in his
Downsview classroom, making sure they
remembered two big dangers of flying.
Another danger is a loose engine,
something Isaacs experienced firsthand
when he took a teenager for a ride in a
small plane in the early 1980s. Isaacs
landed the plane safely in a field near
Markham’s Buttonville Airport, but only
after he carefully avoided smashing
through a fence.
About a dozen years earlier, Isaacs
was among six Guyana Airways pilots
to receive an award for bravery from the
Guyanese prime minister for their role
in stopping an uprising in the southwestern part of the country.
The pilot who never
retired from teaching
because he loved his job
died of pancreatic cancer
on Feb. 21 at age 72.
Isaacs stopped working
only after receiving his
cancer diagnosis last
August.
Isaacs worked at
FlightSafety for over 20
years, often lecturing for
eight or nine hours a day
in ground school.
Isaacs’ students
already had their commercial pilots’
licences. He taught these pilots about a
specific aircraft in a classroom setting for almost two weeks, after which
they trained in a simulator. Pilots from
around the world attended his classes.
Acham said Isaacs was one of the few
people qualified to teach pilots how to
fly all four versions of the Dash 8 — the
100, 200, 300, and 400. The 400 is also
known as the Q400 and is the aircraft
flown by Porter. According to Acham,
Isaacs had memorized every single
intricate difference between the four
models.
In addition to teaching, Isaacs also
had a love for science and astronomy.
He had a powerful telescope with which
he taught his son and daughter how to
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identify objects in the night sky. He once
spent a week at a space camp in Huntsville, Alabama, where he learned what
it’s like to train as an astronaut.
Albert Eustace Isaacs was born in
1942 in what was then known as British
Guiana. After graduating from an aviation school in Florida in 1967, he went
to work for Guyana Airlines as a co-pilot
flying passengers within Guyana and
around the Caribbean.
In January 1969, less than three years
after gaining independence from Great
Britain, Guyana was hit by what became
known as the Rupununi Uprising. Five
police officers and one civilian were
killed in an attack by ranchers on the
police station in the town of Lethem,
an 85-minute flight from the capital,
Georgetown. With no air force, the
Guyanese government commandeered
three Guyana Airways DC-3s — most of
the airline’s fleet — to ferry troops and
supplies from Georgetown to an airstrip
outside Lethem. As co-pilot, Isaacs participated in these missions.
Roland DaSilva, Guyana Airways’s
chief pilot at the time, said the planes
landing in Lethem were attacked by
gunfire on their approach, though none
were hit.
In 1975, upon the birth of their second
child, Isaacs and his wife, Judy, decided
to move to Canada in search of a better
life. Isaacs joined De Havilland Canada
shortly thereafter as a test pilot. He
started working at FlightSafety in the
early 1990s.
Isaacs loved spreading his knowledge
about aviation, and he loved interacting
with youth. In the early 1980s, Barbadian teenager Dirk DaSilva was spending his summer vacation in Toronto
and wanted to learn more about small
planes. A Toronto relative of DaSilva’s
introduced him to Isaacs, who agreed to
take him for a ride in a four seat Cessna
172 based at Buttonville Airport.
Isaacs showed DaSilva how takeoffs
and landings are done. A few minutes
after the third takeoff, the plane started
shaking violently. When Isaacs reduced
engine power, the vibrations calmed.
When he increased power, the vibrations increased.
Isaacs declared an emergency. Buttonville Airport’s runway was cleared,
but Isaacs didn’t think he could turn
the plane around. “That’s where we’re
landing,” he told DaSilva, pointing
straight ahead to a field being plowed by
a farmer.
On final approach, the plane barely
made it over a fence. The landing on
the grassy field was very rough and the
plane stopped just short of a hedge.
Isaacs was calm throughout this incident, said DaSilva, giving the experience an almost routine flavour.
Judy Isaacs said the federal transport
authorities were impressed by how her
husband had safely brought the plane
down. It turned out the metal piece
holding the engine to the plane had
loosened and was close to falling off.
Isaacs leaves behind his wife, his two
children, and three grandchildren.
(George Haim Toronto Star Apr 05
2015)
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The
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Inc.
13 Kenview Blvd., Brampton, ON
905-791-ROTI (7684)
w w w. A l i m a s . t e l
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Saints All Inclusive
A Carib Beer, El
Dorado Rum Spiked
Affair!
Attendees to the April 18 Toronto
St Stanislaus Alumni Association’s
Annual Spring Dance All Inclusive will
have their fill of the Caribbean’s two
most enjoyable alcoholic beverages,
Carib Beer and El Dorado Rum. Both
brands recently came on board as the
event’s corporate product sponsors.
Traditionally sold out, this year’s
event will offer attendees unlimited
opportunities to sample El Dorado’s
popular 5 year old dark rum, as well
as the 3 year old White that was recently introduced to Ontario Liquor
Store shelves. For those whose preference may be for a brew over hard
liquor, there will also be an adequate
supply of Carib, the Caribbean’s
favorite beer.
For the many beautiful ladies likely
to be in attendance, the event will
also provide ample opportunities
to indulge in “Selfies” as entries to
Caribbean
aribbean Jewel
ewel
Carib Beer’s recently launched Carib
Jewel Competition. The Competition
allows ladies to submit their Selfies
for consideration to be featured as
Page 3 Carib Jewels in forthcoming
Caribbean Graphic Issues and be
eligible to also win prizes. Winners
will be chosen according to which
Selfies best reflect Carib’s Spirit as
the Caribbean’s Beer. Entries should
be submitted by email to caribbeangraphic@rogers.com
Jamaica Diaspora
Conference Launch
Jamaica’s Toronto Consul General,
Mr Lloyd Wilks along with the island’s
Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Hon.
Arnaldo Brown, will host this city’s
launching of the 6th Biennial Jamaica
Diaspora Conference on Monday,
April 6 at 6:30 pm at the Jamaican
Canadian centre (995 Arrow Road).
The 6th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora
Conference 2015 will be staged
in Montego Bay from June 13 -18.
Under the theme “ Jamaica and the
Diaspora; Linking for Growth and
Prosperity, the Conference promises
to be an exhilarating, focussed, not
to be missed event.
Convened by Jamaica’s Ministry
of Foreign Affairs, the Conference
is a global forum which connects
Jamaicans and persons of Jamaican
descent from all over the world with
their fellow country folk back home
every two years. The event seeks
to strengthen existing linkages and
networks and to build alliances for
Jamaica’s further development and
improved world standing.
PAGE 3
Carib
Jewel:
Ravishing Rita is our
first Carib Jewel
Contest Winner.
She sent us this
very lovely photo of
herself sipping her
favorite beer at one
of our community’s
most popular
Restaurants.
Shipping all personal and household items to
your destination in 4 weeks or less!
PAGE 4
C
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Guyana’s Political Parties Circuses
Come To Town, Clowns Abound!
andidates from the two main
political Parties that will be
contesting Guyana’s forthcoming
May 11 Elections, the PPP/Civic and the
recently formed APNU-AFC Coalition
will be in Toronto over the April 10-11
and 18-19 weekends. As is usual with
such political circuses their respective
presences here won’t be without a fair
share of comedy and clowning.
First up, on Friday April 10, will be
the incumbent People’s Political Party/
Civic now trying its desperate best to
hold on to the governmental power it
has enjoyed, some would suggest grossly
abused, for the past twenty-two years.
In its attempt to garner the support of
Guyanese-Canadians the PPP/Civic has
sent a high ranking delegation comprised
of three of its supposedly brightest stars.
Heading the delegation will be former
President and PPP/Civic Executive Committee Member Bharrat Jagdeo. He will
be accompanied by the Home Affairs
Minister and Party General Secretary
Clement Rohee, as well as Minister of
Tourism, Housing and Water Irfan Ali.
The first most noticeable aspect of
the PPP/Civic’s representatives, certainly as characterized by these three,
is their penchant for multiple roles.
Such is their perceived brilliance within
the Party’s inner circles that no single
Ministry responsibilities could ever be
adequate for any of them. During his
tenure as President, Jagdeo held several
portfolios. Likewise now Messrs Rohee
and Ali as Government Ministers.The
question becomes though how competently have they done so?
As former President Mr Jagdeo will
likely be the frontline speaker for the
Party’s attempt to impress their Guyanese-Canadian audiences with their
versions of the latest update on one of the
most important and defining elections in
Guyana’s history. In doing so he’s likely
to face a barrage of questions on his own
role in earning Guyana the recently accorded highly unflattering dual description as the Caribbean’s most corrupt
country and South America’s poorest.
Mr Rohee may find himself similarly
challenged to provide a suitable explanation for the anomaly of so many
Guyanese, thousands in number and
particularly those of Indian descent,
having within recent years chosen to
leave their homeland in the quest for
better lives abroad. This from the country that has supposedly progressed and
developed so admirably during the last
twenty-two years of the PPP/Civic’s rule!
For Mr Ali, the challenge will be to
explain the many empty, yet to be fulfilled promises, he and other members of
his Ministry have made within the past
three to five years for the development
of Guyana’s Tourism potential here in
Canada. Promised Fam Trips, Re-Discover Guyana and optimum utilization of
the part Guyanese-owned Fly Jamaica’s
Toronto-Guyana flight route availability
are among the many initiatives that have
been promised and as yet unfulfilled!
The PPP/Civic’s platform therefore
seems to be such a comedic farce that
Messrs Jagdeo, Rohee and Ali may find
themselves at their wits end to create any
desired favorable impressions among
their Guyanese-Canadian audiences. The
fact that the turnout of their marquee
April 10 Elite Banquet Hall Fundraising
Dinner appearances is likely to be almost
exclusively sympathetic Indo-Guyanese,
should however help their cause.
Based on the highly encouraging photos of hundreds of multi-racial Guyanese
attending the rallies they have held to
date in Guyana’s countryside villages, the
APNU-AFC Coalition’s seems to be holding true to the fulfillment of its objective
of a non-racially based election. Recognizing that the traditionally PPP supportive Indo-Guyanese population still
holds a numeric advantage over any of
Guyana’s five other supposedly still existent ethnicities, the APNU-AFC’s leaders
have been working steadfastly to attract
Guyanese of all races to their Time For
Change election themed banner.
As the Party’s Presidential and Prime
Ministerial Candidates, Messrs David
Granger and Moses Nagamootoo will
also be in Toronto on August 18-19
weekend. Mr Granger’s previous history
as a former key Forbes Burnham led
PNC figure and likewise Mr Nagamootoo’s own checkered political past will
likely stimulate some interesting queries
from attendees to scheduled their April
18 Town Hall meeting. Their answers
whatever they may be, seem however
likely to be far less farcical than those
which may emanate from the aforementioned PPP/Civic Representatives.
If there’s any comedic value to be
attributed to the APNU-AFC officials
Toronto tour, its likely to be in the organization of the visit itself. It would appear that the apparently ever increasing
popularity of the APNU-AFC’s GrangerNagamootoo Leadership team has
created a bandwagon effect with scores
of individuals now clamoring to get on
board and somehow be involved.
Evidence of this was recently provided by
the fact that the listed organizers who appeared in an APNU-AFC ad that appeared
in a recent Issue of Indo-Caribbean News
was completely different to that which had
been on the initial promotional flyer announcing Mr Granger’s forthcoming visit.
The ethnic representation on the respective
promotional pieces is also extremely interesting. The multi-racial tone of the GrangerNagamootoo led APNU-AFC Coalition
appears now to have spread its wings even
as far as to our Canadian shores.
Our Readers may however find it
farcical, if not highly comical, that the
apparent current crop of APNU-AFC
organizers should have chosen IndoCaribbean News as a suitable medium
for advertising the Granger-Nagamootoo visit. That publication’s very name is
most descriptive of its ethnic bias and,
as its history would undoubtedly reflect,
its political orientation also.
As Frank Sinatra once sang “ Send In
The Clowns, there ought to be Clowns,
don’t worry, they’re here!”
— Tony McWatt
Guest Editorial
Corruption Thrives In Secret Places!
KAIETEUR NEWs, April 5, 2015
“Government ought to be all
outside and no inside…Everybody knows that corruption
thrives in secret places, and
avoids public places, and we believe it’s a fair presumption that
secrecy means impropriety.”
- Woodrow Wilson, former US
president, 1913
The openness that Wilson spoke of in
the early 1900s is being actively sought
after even 10 decades later. The concept of
open data has been gaining momentum
among local governments in recent years,
but cities in India stubbornly cling onto
their culture of opacity. Open data refers to
the process by which governments disclose
information that is relevant to citizens and
stakeholders in the public domain.
This is crucial as it injects more transparency into governance, thereby making
administrators more accountable. Opening up documents, budgets and decisions
also helps spread awareness about government processes among citizens, thus
giving them a sense of ownership and
participation towards their city.
India has taken some strides towards
openness by enacting the Right to Information Act, 2005 and also by launching
the open data portal www.data.gov.in
by the National Informatics Centre. But
such transparency has largely been restricted to the national and state levels,
not percolating to the working of local
governments which determine the dayto-day life of ordinary citizens.
India’s lack of openness came to the
fore recently. The Open Data Index created by the Open Knowledge Foundation in 2013 to evaluate the availability
and accessibility of information ranked
India a lowly 63rd out of 70 countries.
Political leaders who should be leading by example too prefer to hide behind
closed doors. Municipal councillors
do not disclose related party interests,
making it near impossible for citizens
to grasp whether political decisions are
influenced by conflict of interest.
In Guyana, every councilor is a politician elected on a political ticket.
Contrast this with London where the
pecuniary interests of each councillor are openly available on the website
of the Greater London Authority, with
a detailed break-up of contracts and
corporate ties they may hold or sponsorship they may have received.
A lack of information isn’t the only hurdle towards building effective citizengovernment ties. Community participation too is seriously wanting. In India,
while 16 large cities have passed the
community participation law, no city
except Hyderabad has constituted area
sabhas to involve citizens in policymaking at the neighbourhood level.
Citizens rarely know where or how
their city government spends the money
it collects by way of taxes.
Pune is the only city where citizens
are involved in the budgeting process,
that too on the initiative of NGOs like
Janwani. This is despite laws mandating public disclosure and despite citizen
participation being a reform condition
under the Jawaharlal Nehru National
Urban Renewal Mission.
This opacity is dismal at a time when
cities across the world are investing all
energies in open government practices.
Participatory budgeting in municipal
Publisher/Editor:
Contributors:
Legal: Graphic Design: budgets was initiated as way back as
1989 in Porto Alegre, Brazil and nearly
1,000 cities including Montreal, Seville,
Chicago and NYC have used it since.
Chicago was one of the first municipalities to appoint a chief data officer in
2012 and discloses useful data including
boundaries of beat police officials, the
status of pothole repairs, and cityowned land inventory.
“The city will post online and in easyto-use formats the information that
Chicagoans need most. For example,
complete budget documents will be
available in straightforward and searchable formats. The city’s website will
allow anyone to track and find information on lobbyists and what they are lobbying for as well as which government
officials they have lobbied,” promised
mayor Rahm Emanuel in his elaborately
laid out Chicago transition plan of 2011.
New York took a similar step with the
council approving a local law that required agencies to open up all their data
by 2018. Whether India will follow the
global trail of openness only time will
tell. (The Times of India)
Tony McWatt
Sandra Ann Baptiste, Akua Hinds,
Christine Reid, Sir Ronald Sanders,
Oumarally and Baboolal
Adryan Manasan (www.echodesign.ca | 416.716.2362)
Website: www.caribbeangraphic.ca • Tel: 905.831-4402 • Fax: 416.292.2943 • Email: caribbeangraphic@rogers.com
April 8, 2015
I
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Bishop’s High School Toronto Alumni
Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary
t is celebration time again
in the Guyanese-Canadian
alumni association community. This year marks the 30th
anniversary of the Toronto Chapter of
the Bishops’ High School Alumni Association (BHSAA), a pioneering alumni
association in the Greater Toronto Area.
BHSAA Toronto shares this milestone
year with another organization and an
event of which the Association is an
integral part – Last Lap Lime. It is the
20th anniversary of the Lime which was
created and is hosted annually by five
alumni associations - Bishops’ High
School, Queen’s College, St. Joseph’s
High School, St. Rose’s High School,
and St. Stanislaus College. As BHSAA
celebrates its 30th anniversary, it is also
excited about what has been achieved
through the twenty years of collaboration because of the common goal to
promote high standards of education
and learning environments at the five
respective schools. Since Last Lap Lime
was launched in August 1996, this major
fundraising initiative has become a
very special event in the summer social
calendar of the Guyanese-Canadian
community in Toronto.
Over the years, Last Lap Lime has
become increasingly popular as the
place where family and friends gather
on “Caribana Monday,” share eats and
have fun. It is a well-known meeting
place for fellow alumni and other Guya-
nese visiting Toronto for the Scotiabank
Caribbean Carnival (formerly Caribana)
to connect with friends. The BHSAA
tent is a welcoming centre for all alumni
and guests and the Lime is a great opportunity to promote our mission and
activities to a wider audience. Every
year, a part of the proceeds allocated
to each of the five Alumni Associations
is designated to show gratitude to the
community that has helped to make
the Lime and independent fund-raising
endeavours a success. Donations are
made to charitable organizations selected by the associations.
From its inception, BHSAA Toronto
has been very involved in the evolution of the Last Lap Lime, including
the planning and operational phases.
One of its members is currently the
Project Manager for the Lime. Many
of our alumni readily volunteer their
time to make this event a success,
whether as a member of the Board,
captain of a food tent, working shifts
PAGE 5
at a designated food station, or setting
up and managing the BHSAA tent. The
success of Last Lap Lime benefits our
mission, since proceeds from Last Lap
Lime have boosted the level of annual
contributions made by the Association
to the School.
BHSAA Toronto Chapter was
founded in July 1985 by three alumni
- Patricia Moore, Aileen Morgan and
Lynette Spence - with the initial aim
of bringing together fellow alumni to
assist its alma mater in Georgetown
in maintaining its legacy of academic
excellence. It is the second oldest of
nine BHS International Chapters in key
locations around the world. Throughout its history, the Toronto Chapter has
been steadfastly committed to keeping
the legacy alive for students and graduates. It has strived to engage members
in comradeship and in the continuing
growth of the organization, in keeping
with the School’s mantra “…may each
to each prove ever true comrade and
true friend.”
Members of the Association come
from the Greater Toronto Area. All
alumni are invited to be members or associates and the chapter serves as a link
for alumni who live elsewhere, in and
outside of Canada, where no Chapter exists. An open invitation is extended to
fellow alumni to join in building on the
achievement of 30 years of friendship
and active service.
PAGE 6
T
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
April 8, 2015
BISHOPS SCHOOL PROJECTS
o date, monies
raised have allowed BHSAA
Toronto to provide over
half a million Canadian
dollars in financial and
non-financial aid to its
alma mater. The projects made possible by
financial contributions
include infrastructural
and curriculum support,
library resources, annual bursaries for student
support, and identified
school-based needs.
Computer LAB – the establishment of this fullynetworked Lab is the
largest project undertaken, with over $300,000
put towards it. BHSAA
Toronto provides ongoing maintenance and
upgrade, with current
software, security systems, and Internet access
throughout the School.
Over the years, the Lab
Project extended to the
Library, School Office
and Staff Room. There
are now approximately
50 computers on site,
along with printers, including a donated stateof-the-art printer for the
School Office. BHSAA
acquired this multifunction printer due to the
initiative of a Board director and the generosity of family friend and
business owner, Rudolph
Singh.
Acquisition and provision of books and other
multi-media resources
provides ongoing upgrade of the School Library.
Annual Bursaries allow
School Administration to
provide support to current BHS students.
Lunch and Transportation Programs - in 2013,
alumni in the GTA caringly responded when
they learned about the
nutritional and transportation needs of current
BHS students. BHSAA
began to allocate funds
for the School’s Lunch
Program. Special appeals to alumni were successful, and many made
generous donations towards meals and special
transportation subsidies.
Some alumni committed
themselves to ongoing
contributions to these
programs.
The Interactive Volunteer Program is an
ongoing initiative. The
Association continues to
encourage alumni “volunteers” to return to the
School to share or use
their extensive experiences and qualifications
to motivate, mentor and
inspire current students.
Bishop Furniture
Bishop Computer Room
Bishop Library
April 8, 2015
PAGE 7
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PAGE 8
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Bishops Community Projects
B
HSAA is dedicated in its
efforts to give back to the
Toronto community. The
Association presents a number
of activities to showcase its
cultural heritage and extend
friendship ties with its friends,
supporters and sponsors.
The Circle of Support program
has a very special place in the life
of BHSAA. A dedicated group of
alumni make visits and support other
alumni, friends, family and Guyanese
seniors in the community, offering
care and compassion, and bringing
cheer when needed, particularly during illness or bereavement. Annually,
the Support group spreads “Christmas Cheer” to seniors and shut-ins
by packing and delivering Christmas
baskets. For the past two years, they
hosted a delightful luncheon for seniors who were mobile, thanks to the
generosity of a faithful friend of the
Chapter who provided the meal. This
luncheon would not be possible without the many volunteers who assist
and/or raise their voices in beautiful
Christmas song.
Since 1997, the Annual Bursary Award
Program has benefitted 42 recipients.
It was initiated to enable young people
from the Guyanese-Canadian community to pursue higher education. An
award of $1,000(CAD) is annually available to children and/or grandchildren
of BHS alumni, and there’s a separate
award of $1,000
for children of
Guyanese heritage,
sponsored by an
alumnus. The
special Olive King
Bursary is awarded
for outstanding
academic record
and achievements
in voluntary community service.
BHSAA Toronto
is well known for
its Literary Evenings. For the
past 28 years, this
program has been
offered as a tribute
to members and
supporters and is a
community favourite. As a culturally-oriented activity,
it features an assortment of poems,
short stories, skits
and excerpts from
books predominantly written by authors of Guyanese
and Caribbean background/heritage.
Charitable Donations are seen as an
important way of giving back to the
community. Each year, in addition to
the donations through Last Lap Lime,
BHSAA makes a gift from its funds to a
Canadian charity of choice. The Canadian Breast Cancer Society, Caribbean
Diabetes Association, Help Conquer
Cancer Ride, Herbie Fund, Toronto
Children’s Breakfast Club, North York
Women’s Shelter -Transitional Services,
Gilda’s Club and YWCA December 6
Fund are among the many recipients.
BHSAA Toronto has a long-standing
relationship with the Alliance of
Guyanese Canadian Organizations. The
Saturday Morning Mentorship Program
which was initiated by AGCO’s Youth
Arm has been sustained by two of
BHSAA’s founding members. For many
years, the Association has provided
volunteer teacher-administrators for
this Program.
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April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Guyanese Ambassador Assaulted
by Surinamese Police
GEORGETOWN, Guyana’s Ambassador
to Suriname, Keith George, was allegedly assaulted by two Surinamese Police
Officers who breached international
diplomatic agreements concerning the
jurisdiction of Police on the territory of
embassies as they attempted to arrest
the Ambassador’s chauffeur.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry in
Guyana has since expressed its deepest
concerns regarding the assault and the
violation of the Vienna Convention.
According to reports, a man had
parked his vehicle in front of a “no
parking” sign by the gate of the Guyana
Embassy. When security indicated his
error and requested he remove his vehicle, as it was blocking the entrance to
the Embassy, the man then behaved in
an aggressive and disorderly manner.
Instead of complying, he reportedly
exited his vehicle and then assaulted the
security guard on duty.
Higher
Rice
Prices
Promised
GEORGETOWN, The Opposition
Coalition has promised the largely
rice-dependent Essequibo Coast that
it would examine ways of ensuring that
lowly-paid farmers receive higher prices for their paddy and that they get a
fair share from sales to Venezuela.
Prime Ministerial candidate Moses Nagamootoo appealed to the
rice farmers to vote in favour of a
government that would bring an
end to “vampires” who were paying meager prices for paddy while
the country’s coffers earn billions of
dollars from grain sales to Venezuela. “You don’t need a reason for a
change in government. You need a
new government that would change
the laws so that prices are guar-
PPP/C Promises Diverse
List Of Elections
Candidates
GEORGETOWN, The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) says its list of
candidates which was to be presented
to the nation on Tuesday, April 07,
(Nomination Day) to represent the Party
at the General and Regional Elections
on May 11 will reflect the, “diversity of
the country and is made up of persons
who are aptly competent to continue to
take Guyana forward.”
In an April 5 media release the
Party stated that, “As President Donald
Ramotar had assured the nation in a
The Ambassador’s chauffeur then intervened to stop the skirmish, but later
became the subject of verbal abuse from
the driver of the vehicle.
After refusing to remove his vehicle
and continuing to verbally attack the
authorities, the Guyana Ambassador instructed his staff to call the local Police.
Two Police ranks arrived and as per the
provisions of the Vienna Convention, the
Ambassador invited them onto the premises and explained the situation to them.
The officers then proceeded beyond
the Embassy’s gate and engaged in a
conversation with the driver of the vehicle. The Policemen then reentered the
premises and announced that they had
to arrest the Ambassador’s chauffeur as
he was a suspect in relation to injuries
suffered by the driver who behaved
disorderly.
But, as per the Vienna Convention,
the Ambassador informed the ranks
that they could not effect an arrest on
the premises of an embassy and any
issue must be addressed through the
Foreign Affairs Ministry.
However, the Police Officers disregarded the Ambassador, declaring it
was Surinamese territory and that the
Ambassador was obstructing their work.
They then proceeded to effect the arrest,
and in the process, grabbed on the Ambassador’s clothing ripping his shirt.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry in Guyana has not taken this incident lightly
and has since demanded an explanation from Surinamese officials.
The Ministry expects that necessary
measures be taken to ensure there
is no recurrence of the violations of
international laws and that the proper
action be taken by the Government of
Suriname against those who violated
the principles set out by the Vienna
Convention.
anteed,” he told more than 4,000
persons at Damon Square, Anna
Regina, Essequibo Coast.
Nagamootoo supported calls for
the establishment of a Development
Bank from which millers could borrow
to pay farmers. He endorsed calls for
farmers to be given a major say in
managing the rice industry through
the Guyana Rice Development Board
(GRDB) and remove discrimination
about the allocation of quotas.
The concerns and promises were
earlier made by, among others,
prominent Essequibo businessman
Sam Bacchus and hotelier and rice
miller, Robert Badal at a rally held at
Damon Square, Anna Regina.
It was on the Essequibo Coast
that rice farmers had last year
blocked roads with burning objects to vent their frustration at the
long-delayed payments by millers.
Several of the farmers were teargassed, arrested and prosecuted.
Addressing the largest diverse
and multi-ethnic gathering that the
opposition has attracted so far for
the May 11, 2015 general elections,
Badal empathized with farmers who
receive “directed and dictated”
prices. Noting that he does not pay
farmers GUY$500 per bag of paddy
but instead offers GUY$3,400 or
GUY$3,200 per bag and that farmers receive full payments, Badal
expressed optimism that farmers
could be treated better.
Naitram, a member of the Essequibo Paddy Farmers Association,
told attendees that farmers should
be paid at least GUY$2,800 per
bag instead of being handed out
GUY$500 by “fat cats” who sell rice
and paddy to Venezuela through an
agreement with the Guyana government. The AFC Councillor for
Region Two (Pomeroon- Supenaam)
called for farmers to be adequately
represented on GRDB. “We want to
see genuine rice farmers from each
region representing farmers’ interest. It is time for a change,” said Natram who was among those who
had been charged with protestrelated activities.
previous interview, the list will be a truly
representative one.”According to the
PPP, its main objective is not to give
glorious promises that cannot be realized, but to give society real tangible
goals which are already in the pipeline.
“Our framework is predictable with
policy implementation flowing from
a societal consensus for function and
desired outcome. As our Party seeks
refiscal development and infrastructural track record which has transformed
the lives of all our citizens.”
The PPPC also boasted of its, “political force that is clearly identifiable
through its commitment to democracy,
freedom, diversity, non- violence, gender equality and global sustainable development. Its track record has been
one sprouting with real development
of which the evidence is overwhelming
across the ten Regions.”
“The choice that you make on May
11 will determine whether Guyana
continues on its developmental path.
The challenges over the past three
years have re-emphasized that only
a majority PPPC government can
ensure, through its prudent management, our nation’s potential of becoming a developed country which
would create a brighter future for all.”
PAGE 9
Return To
Post Election
Coalition
Planned
GEORGETOWN, Guyana’s opposition coalition intends to change
the constitution to allow for parties
to team up after a general election
to prevent the one with the plurality from forming the government,
a top official of the Alliance For
Change (AFC) has said.
AFC Chairman, Nigel Hughes
signaled the coalition’s intention
to do so at a rally at Anna Regina
where the opposition’s Presidential Candidate, David Granger
also appealed to Essequibians
to vote overwhelmingly for the
coalition of A Partnership for National Unity+ Alliance For Change
(APNU+AFC) on May 11, 2015.
Hughes suggested that the
constitutional amendment that in
1964 permitted a post-election
coalition between the People’s
National Congress (PNC) and
the United Force (UF) should be
reintroduced. “After five decades, we have a
constitution that says if you don’t
get a majority, you cannot wait
until after the elections to come
together and form a coalition
because if that had happened
and if we had those provisions in
the constitution, we would have
had President David Granger
and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo since 2011 so we must
understand the things we have
to change,” he said. Aspects of
Guyana’s Constitution cannot be
amended unless they are supported by at least 43 of the 65
elected parliamentarians.
Although the incumbent
People’s Progressive Party Civic
(PPPC) lost its majority by one seat
at the November, 2011 election
to the combined opposition with
33 seats, the President appointed
a cabinet and ran the country as
if his party had enjoyed a simple
majority. Opposition-piloted and
approved laws and motions were
for the most part ignored.
Meanwhile, Granger begged
Essequibians to vote in their
numbers for APNU+AFC this time
around unlike what they had done
in 2011. Hughes said the time has
come to erase constitutional provisions that make the president
immune from legal action and
give him absolute power.
In the Cummingsburg Accord
that established the pre-election
coalition, APNU and AFC have
agreed to pursue constitutional
reform if elected to office in just
over one month from now.
PAGE 10
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Positive
Results
BRIDGETOWN, Finance and Economic
Affairs Minister, Christopher Sinckler
has said that while the first year of the
Barbados Revenue Authority (BRA) was
challenging, Government has started to
see positive results from the new entity.
He told this to a cocktail reception held to launch the 16th Regional
Revenue Games. He recalled that two
weeks ago during the debate on the
Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure he had indicated the areas which
needed strengthening. Those areas are
the BRA, the Financial Services Commission and a National Procurement
Authority, which is on the cards for later
this year.
The BRA is an amalgamation of Government’s revenue collection agencies.
The Customs and Excise Department
will join the BRA later this year. The Minister pointed out that Government’s aim in creating the BRA is
to have a more stable, user-friendly,
transparent and sustainable tax administration system.
The Minister said the importance
of such a gathering of professionally
aligned persons cannot be understated.
He said that the delegations should be
cognizant that the occasion affords
the opportunity for tax administrators
to exchange ideas, speak informally
about the developments within their
own sphere of operations and to share
perspectives on how things can be made
better, more efficient and more effective
for Caribbean citizens.
The Minister pointed out that their
work is critical to the economic development in all of our respective countries.
“The work of your departments is the
bedrock of our economies and the
success we have had in the past and of
course that which will be guaranteed for
the future,” the Minister stated..
Sinckler said the games present for
us Caribbean people an opportunity to
build friendships and to strengthen our
bonds and unity as Caribbean nations
and people. “From the inception in St.
Lucia in 1998, these games promoted
regional integration through sports and
recreational activities and this year’s
theme “Many Arms One Embrace” symbolizes the continuation of that tradition,” he added.
Female Rapper Accuses
Rihanna Of Song Theft
BRIDGETOWN, Rihanna could have a lawsuit on the way if
aspiring female rapper Just Brittany fans have their way. The
Bajan pop star just recently released her new single “B**ch
Better Have My Money” and it has been the talk of social
media since. She has also performed the track on the 2015
iHeartRadio Music awards. The Texas native rapper also has
a single titled “Better Have My Money” which she recorded
long before Rihanna released hers.
In fact Just Britanny release the song on SoundCloud just
9 months ago. Several of her fans on social media are chastising Rihanna saying that the pop superstar stole the song,
with some going as far as to suggest a lawsuit.
So it isn’t Just Brittany making the accusations, it’s her fans
who are pushing the fire.
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Surinam Airways
Wants Back In
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados appears to
be in line for increased airlift from the
region. After terminating its scheduled
service to Barbados several years ago,
Surinam Airways is making a bid to
resume flights here, as well as to other
Caribbean destinations.
Last week, it wrote the United States
Department of Transportation and officially asked it to “renew its scheduled
service exemption authority as well
as the authority to operate charters”.
Surinam Airways last had approval for
such an exemption in 1995.
The airline currently operates service to Amsterdam, Aruba, Belem,
Curacao, Cayenne, Georgetown,
Miami, Port of Spain, and Paramaribo, but it wants to expand the
service to several other destinations,
including Barbados. The airline previously operated a service here, with
Reservations Services Limited as its
local agent, before it was terminated.
“By orders...and notices of action
taken dated February 18, 1992; March
19, 1992; March 9, 1993; and March
9, 1995,...Surinam Airways has been
granted exemption authority to operate scheduled service between points
in Suriname and the co-terminal
points New York/Newark and Miami,
Plan To
Increase UWI
Enrolment
BRIDGETOWN, Government’s
plan is to get student enrolment
at the Cave Hill Campus of the
University of the West Indies
back up to 9 000-plus as quickly
as possible.
In fact, said Minister of Finance
Chris Sinckler yesterday, priority
has to be given to ensuring that
persons who put their university
education on hold after Government insisted they would have to
pay their own tuition fees, back
into the classroom before they
lose interest.
In an interview with local Media , the minister said: “Our goal
is that as many people as can
be accommodated reasonably
and affordably at the university
should be allowed to do so and
if it means bringing that number
back up to 9 000 . . . we would
have to work towards that.
Christianity
Alive And Well
BRIDGETOWN, Christianity is
still alive and well in Barbados
Florida, via one or more of the following intermediate points: Georgetown,
Guyana; Port of Spain, Trinidad and
Tobago; Curacao, Netherlands Antilles; Aruba; Barbados; and Port-auPrince, Haiti,” the airline’s attorney
Herbert Rosenthal said in an application document dated March 17, 2015.
“Surinam Airways seeks to...renew
its exemption authority issued on
March 9th, 1995 and...amend its current exemption authority to include
service between points in Suriname,
on the one hand, and Orlando and/
or Sanford, Florida, on the other via...
Georgetown, Guyana; Port of Spain,
Trinidad and Tobago; Curacao,
Netherlands Antilles; Aruba; Barbados; and Port-au-Prince, Haiti. At this
moment, the service to Orlando will
serve Georgetown, Guyana, as the
intermediate point.
“Surinam Airways desires to commence operations on or about July 1,
2015, during the months of July, August, and September. Initially, the service will be one roundtrip per week.
If the service is financially viable,
Surinam Airways would continue the
service and increase the frequencies,
serve Sanford and/or Orlando, and/or
service other intermediate points.”
and there are still many youth
involved, said Monsignor Vincent
Blackett. Speaking to local media
after the late morning service,
Blackett said Barbadians had
been turning out in their numbers for the Easter services and
activities.
“From our perspective, we have
had [large numbers] for communion [today] and it was the same
last night and at 7 a.m. This is
very heartening and the number
of young people and young families, that is a good sign,” he said,
adding the youth were out in their
numbers taking part in the 14 stations re-enactment.
During his sermon, Blackett
said Jesus was to be found in
places some may deem unlikely
and Christians seeking Him must
not turn their faces away from
the poor or downtrodden because in doing so, they turn away
from Jesus.
“We will find the risen Lord
where we least expect him, in the
Galilees of this world. It is right
here, at St Patrick’s Cathedral.
You will find Jesus because you
will find all kinds of people coming together to worship, among
the [so-called] insignificant
people,” he said.
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Antigua Now Owns
West Indian Oil
ST.JOHN’s, Antigua Prime Minister
Gaston Browne has hailed as “one of the
most significant transactions”, a deal
that he signed on April 1 which paved
the way for Antigua & Barbuda to acquire the majority shares in West Indies
Oil Company (WIOC).
Speaking in London, England where
the agreement was finalised, Browne said:
“It was a most empowering initiative.”
“It is an historic day. It is one of the
most significant transactions to have
taken place within the last four decades
in this country, perhaps to be only
superseded by the acquisition of the
syndicate lands by the late Father of the
Nation Sir VC Bird Sr.
“This transaction will see well in advance of $150 million in value being placed
in the hands of the people of Antigua and
Barbuda,” Prime Minister Browne said.
He added that the transaction should
instill a sense of pride in Antiguans and
Barbudans, and that, “Private profits will
be converted into corporate profits for the
benefit of Antiguans and Barbduans.”
The agreement is for 75 per cent shares
in WIOC, which Browne describes as one
of the more profitable private sector institutions in the Organisation of Eastern
Caribbean States (OECS).
The deal was inked with the Rappaport family who, for many years, had
controlling interest in WIOC.
Antigua’s PM Knocks
LIAT Rival Plan
ST JOHN’S, Antigua Prime Minister
Gaston Browne says he will not support plans to establish a rival airline
to the financially troubled LIAT. He
said he was aware that Antigua and
Barbuda did not have the shareholding
majority in LIAT to stop any moves by
the Barbados government to establish
the new airline.
“Well, I imagine we don’t have any
legal basis on which to stop them. We
just hope [that] at the end of the day,
commonsense, reasonableness, equity
will prevail.
“My understanding is that Barbados
is considering forming a new airline
and to collapse LIAT and it is unfortunate that they are now seeking to take
that position.
“I have actually seen a proposal . .
. in which Barbados is now seeking to
literally collapse LIAT to take several
of the planes and to form the new airline,” Prime Minister Browne said on
state-owned ABS Television.
LIAT shareholder governments
are Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados,
Dominica and St Vincent and the
Grenadines, and Browne said the move
to establish the new airline is contrary
to the spirit of Caribbean integration.
“I do not think that this is in the spirit
of good relations and I just hope that
the other shareholder governments will
understand that . . . at the end of the
day we all share common space in the
OECS and CARICOM, we are our brothers’ keepers and for us to take those
extremist positions in order to promote
whatever national agendas we may have
is totally unacceptable,” he added.
Antigua and Barbuda has already
voiced its opposition to plans to relocate
the base of the airline from Antigua and
Barbuda to Barbados. But St Vincent
and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr
Ralph Gonsalves said that the decision
was based on the realities of LIAT.
Union Seeking
Clarification In
Dominica TV
Company Sale
ROSEAU, Dominica, The Waterfront
and Allied Workers Union (WAWU)
says it is seeking clarification regarding the sale of the television company,
Marpin Telecoms and Broadcasting
(Marpin 2K4 Limited).
WAWU secretary general Kertist
Augustus confirmed that the union
had written to the company amid
reports that the discussions with te
potential buyer was “well advanced”.
Augustus said that the union had a
responsibility of securing and protecting the jobs of its members and
as a result “we felt it was necessary
to let the company know that …what
our position is on that.
PAGE 11
“Again because of the grape vine
news we have been hearing certain
things and we do not know right
or wrong what is in fact correct. So
we sent off a letter to the management…reminding them of a letter
we sent to them on January 28
where we agreed in 2014 to certain
conditions” including a 10 per cent
wage cut across the board.
Last December, the Dominica Social
Security (DSS) denied media reports
that it had sold the cash-strapped Marpin 2K4 Ltd television company to the
telecommunications company, LIME.
DSS, which is the sole owner of the
company, said that it would make a
public announcement if and when
the company is sold.
But a senior official of LIME, which
is owned by the British telecommunications giant, Cable and Wireless,
had confirmed that talks were at an
advanced stage to acquire the television company.
3 Vincentians held
In Drug Bust
KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent, The Dominica police said
they had seized at least half a million dollars (One EC
dollar=US$0.37 cents) in marijuana and seized an open keel
boat during a drug exercise involving the Coast Guard and
other law enforcement officials earlier this week.
Police spokesman, ASP Claude Weekes said two of the three
men who were on the boat, 1.5 miles from Stowe, south of the
capital, at the time of the exercise jumped into the sea, with
one of them still at large.
“We are very interested in him for the matter,’ he said, adding that “the two men whom we have in custody are assisting
in the investigations are Vincentians.
The drugs seized weighed 536 pounds and Weekes said the
marijuana was well packaged and kept in crocos bags.
St.Kitts Seeking
Economic Citizenship
Programme Changes
BASSETERRE, St.Kitts, The twin island
state of St.Kitts and Nevis is looking
to make some changes to its Economic
Citizenship Programme, in the face of
concerns voiced by countries including
Canada and the
United States. The twin-island
state’s new Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris made this admission
March 27, on the fringes of a meeting of the Regional Security System’
(RSS) Council of Ministers at the
Hilton Barbados resort.
“We at home are working post-haste
to revamp the programme to institute some control measures which we
think will reduce incidence of risk to
our programme and to our partners
internationally and we are confident,”
he commented.
“In December 2014 an independent
investigation was done of the programme. We are studying that report
from a credible and respectable entity
that has itself been involved in due
diligence in relation to citizenship, in relation to financial transactions and they
are looking at those recommendations
and in a week or two Cabinet will make
a determination how we will proceed
in light of those recommendations and
in light of the other information that
we have garnered from our interactions
with developers in the programme,
service providers and, of course, with
concerned governments.”
PAGE 12
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
New Downtown
Arts Centre
KINGSTON, Jamaicans will soon have
the opportunity to learn about and
experience the culture of Venezuela
when the Símon Bolívar Cultural Centre
in downtown Kingston opens its doors
later this month. The facility, which is a
multi-purpose centre for the performing
and visual arts, was refurbished by the
Urban Development Corporation (UDC)
at a cost of $4.13 million.
It will be managed and operated by
the Institute of Jamaica (IOJ) following
an April 2 official handover by the UDC
during a ceremony at the centre’s location at 10-12 North Parade.
Speaking at the event, chairman of
the UDC, Senator KD Knight said the
renovation works are in keeping with
the agency’s redevelopment plan for
downtown Kingston.
He noted that a key reason for its
establishment was to “have an edifice
in honour of the Símon Bolívar, who is
a national hero in Venezuela, and who
was exiled here in Jamaica”.
Senator Knight expressed the hope
that Jamaicans will take advantage of
facilities being provided for cultural
education, performances, and exhibits.
He informed of plans to renovate
the centre’s environs “to see what kind
of retrofitting can be done to those
buildings to make the entire area more
pleasant.” Executive Director of the IOJ
Anne Marie Bonner said the institute is
pleased to be taking over the management of the centre.
She noted that the IOJ is looking
forward to all the programmes that will
be offered, and all the activities leading
up the September bicentennial of the
writing of the famous letter, for which
Símon Bolívar is well known.
General Manager of UDC Desmond
Malcolm told local media that there
will be limited use of the centre when
it opens in a week. It is anticipated that
the library will be up and running by
then. An official opening ceremony will
be held by the end of 2015.
The two-storey Georgian building,
which is the former office of the Jamaica
Agricultural Society, entails a library,
an interpretation room, three multi-
purpose rooms, administrative offices,
and a kitchenette.
It also features an exhibit space, the
Símon Bolívar Exhibit Hall to commemorate the Venezuelan liberator’s stay in
Jamaica in 1815, and provides a link to
the architectural period that existed at
the time of his stay in Kingston.
It was during his stay of nine months,
when he lived at 33 Princess Street in
downtown Kingston, that he penned
what is reputed to be his greatest written work, the “Jamaica Letter”, which
is believed to contain his views on the
independence movement in Venezuela.
The cultural centre is the brainchild of
late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez and
former Prime Minister PJ Patterson.
The project, which began in 2009,
was funded by the Government of Venezuela’s Petro Caribe Development Fund
and the Government of Jamaica.
Arsonist Still
Employed
Disaster preparedness teams,
personnel from the National Solid
Waste Management Authority,
the Jamaica Fire Brigade, and the
security forces, fought the blaze
which released stifling smoke across
the Corporate Area, sections of St
Catherine and Clarendon for almost
three weeks.
Unlike the fire last year, when an
individual from Spanish Town, St
Catherine lit the facility, the accused
man is a resident of Riverton City. His
face is usually covered with cloth, so
identifying him at first glance is usually a challenge to those who do not
know his facial features.
The lighting of the dump on March
10 began after a fuss developed over
plastic bottles being stored there by
certain men. The man said to have
lit the fire lost some of his bottles to
thieves and he was not happy about
it. He, like others who store plastic
bottles, intended to sell the items.
KINGSTON, The man who residents
of Riverton City have accused of
starting a fire at the dump located
in that community last month is still
‘working’ at the waste facility and
continues to go about his business
with ease, local media has reported.
A local media investigation has
unearthed information that the individual, whose christian name rhymes
with that of a cartoon character
created by Tex Avery in 1943 for the
US-based Metro Goldwyn-Meyer
studio, still visits the dump daily and
continues to ‘hustle’ as normal.
To compound matters, those in
the know at the controversial waste
disposal facility said that the accused
man was, ironically, among the paid
personnel assisting with fighting the
flames and trying to keep the smoke
under control.
Florida Man
Sentenced For
Jamaica Lottery
Scam Role
KINGSTON, A south Florida man
has been sentenced to nearly six
years in federal prison for his role
in a Jamaica-based lottery scam
that preyed on elderly victims.
Prosecutors said that the sentence was imposed by a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale on
26-year-old Mikhail Gorbachev
George Williams. He pleaded
guilty in January to a wire fraud
conspiracy charge.
Investigators say Williams was part
of a fraud scheme in which victims
were falsely told they had won a Jamaican lottery. To claim the prize, evidence shows victims were told they
had to pay bogus taxes, duties and
fees to Williams, who then forwarded
them to associates in Jamaica.
Prosecutors say Williams was
responsible for up to $400,000 in
losses to victims.
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Senior Account Manager
April 8, 2015
PAGE 13
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
PM Praises T&T’s Ethnic Diversity
PORT-OF-SPAIN, PRIME Minister
Kamla Persad-Bissessar has condemned
the “senseless killings” of 150 people
at a university in Kenya, and says this
country is blessed to have such religious
and ethnic diversity in harmony.
In her Easter message Persad-Bissessar that all too often one reads about
countries where followers of a particular religion — Christianity, Hinduism
or Islam — “are targeted and brutally
killed just because they profess a faith
that is different”. PNM Ahead
PORT-OF-SPAIN, If a general
election were called immediately
the Opposition People’s National
Movement (PNM) would have a
slight edge over the ruling People’s
Partnership government, the results
of a new poll have shown.
The poll was commissioned
exclusively by the Trinidad Express
Newspapers and conducted by data
analysis firm Solution by Simulation
(SBS) led by pollster Nigel Henry.
It indicates that Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s favourability
rating remains higher than Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley’s.
But more respondents disapproved than approved of Government’s actions when it comes to the
Race Still The
Decider
PORT-OF-SPAIN, The electorate in
Trinidad and Tobago continues to be
polarized by race as the country gears
for a general election no later than
September this year, according to an
opinion poll published here on April 6.
The poll, published in the Trinidad
Express newspaper and conducted
by Solution by Simulation Limited
(SBS), said if a general election
were held now, the main opposition People’s National Movement
(PNM) would receive 31 per cent of
the votes as against 26 per cent for
the coalition People’s Partnership
administration.
But the pollsters found that the
electorate continues to be polarised by race with very few voters
of African descent supporting the
Indo-dominated coalition People’s
Partnership and few voters of East
Indian descent supporting the
African-based PNM, although large
segments of these groups indicate
that they are undecided.
The poll found that the undecided
voters are as high as 33 per cent.
The poll conducted between March
23-25 with a margin of error of minus
or plus four per cent, noted that the
PNM continues to hold a lead among
voters of mixed descent although 45
“Men, women, and children maimed
and killed just because they worship the
one God called by a different name,” she
said, noting Thursday’s killing of 147
people in Kenya in an attack by al-Shabab militants at the Garissa University
College in Nairobi. Persad-Bissessar also recalled a February beheading of 22 Egyptian Catholics by Islamic State militants in Libya. She noted that in his Good Friday
message on Friday, Pope Francis
spoke out against the persecution of
handling of the economy, whether
State funds are in effect being used
for political campaigning and the
firing of former national security
minister Gary Griffith.
Four hundred and eighty-five
people were interviewed during the
period March 23-25 via live telephone calls.
The poll was already in progress
when the Vernella Alleyne-Toppin/
Dr Keith Rowley issue arose in Parliament on March 25.
Respondents within households
were at least 18 years old (of voting
age) and willing to participate. The
margin of error is +/- four percentage points.
Following is the analysis of the
poll by SBS. per cent of this group is undecided.
“The battle for the 2015 election
may largely centre around a competition to turn out voters at higher rates,
the favourability ratings of the party
leaders, and the segment of the population who continue to reject both
major parties,” the pollsters found.
“This poll continues to confirm that
the biggest drivers of political preference are ethnicity and the popularity
of the party leaders. Notwithstanding the Partnership’s slight drop in
popularity (in favour of undecided)
the Prime Minister’s favourability rating remains very high at 50 per cent,
and the Leader of Opposition’s favourability is a modest 40 per cent.”
Reacting to the outcome of the
poll, deputy leader of the United
National Congress (UNC) Dr. Roodal
Moonilal, said he remained confident
that the present government would
be returned to power.
“I’ve also taken note that what the
poll found was that the PNM was unable to move, they are locked within
their own column and they cannot
move further because the poll suggests that the undecided is still there
to be convinced and the PNM has
not been able to convince the undecided to support them so their figure
has not moved,” he said, noting that
the coalition has yet to put its election campaign into “high gear”.
Christians and “I too, condemn the
unwarranted killings and to remind
our people that we are truly blessed in
Trinidad and Tobago”. She noted that “we are truly blessed in
this country of ours as we all appreciate
and celebrate our various religious festivals and events in peace and harmony.
Indeed, I can think of nowhere else on
earth that has such religious and ethnic
diversity such as ours and where religion
unites rather than separate peoples”. “We are so fortunate here in our
beloved country of Trinidad and Tobago
where citizens truly look forward to the
celebration of various religious festivals.
In this country you can see peoples of
different ethnicities and creeds actively
participating in and celebrating Divali,
Phagwa, Eid-ul-Fitr, Christmas, and
Easter…just to name a few,” she noted. Persad-Bissessar said the atmosphere
around these festivals and events “is
highly charged with excitement and
happiness where participants rejoice
with friends and family at the wonder
not only of these celebrations but I dare
say also of the camaraderie that these
inspire”. Shesaid that as Prime Minister, she was proud to lead a nation “that
ensures that every creed and race find
an equal place” and whose supreme law,
the Constitution, guarantees all citizens,
“freedom of conscience and religious
belief and observance”. “This is the very Constitution that I,
as Prime Minister, swore a sacred oath
to uphold and defend,” she stressed. Persad-Bissessar also spoke about
the contribution the Christian community has made to national development,
citing such areas as education, medicine, law, business, the arts, and social
work as she noted that “they (members
of the Christian community) continue
to provide yeoman service to their
fellow citizens regardless of ethnicity,
creed, or gender”. She said for Christians, Easter was a
time “where, in Jesus, love has triumphed over hatred, mercy over sinfulness, goodness over evil, truth over
falsehood, hope over despair, and life
over death”. She said the Easter message
of rebirth and forgiveness also gives
hope that no matter what has happened
in the past “each new day carries with
it the promise of a new beginning, a
chance to do better, and the opportunity
to make a positive difference”. LAWYERS
3045A Hurontario Street
❏ Criminal Law
Mississauga, Ontario
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PAGE 14
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
HOME AFFAIRS
Real Estate Commissions And
Legal Fees, What’s Going On Part II
W
hile real estate commissions have increased, the fees being
charged by some lawyers to
conduct real estate transactions have, interestingly enough,
decreased. Each year a new crop of
lawyers are called and admitted to practice – for some of these new calls private
practice is attractive, and real estate law
seems to be in demand. The problem is
that there are other established practitioners in firms already in the market,
so in order to compete – these newer
lawyers offer reduced rates or bargain
basement prices to conduct real estate
transactions. Not only is this approach
foolish on the part of the lawyer who offers such discounts; it is also very risky
for the consumer. This is because to
become a lawyer one would have had to
invest six-eight years of post-secondary
education, so why should these individuals sell themselves short and under
value their services.
Secondly, it is a well-known fact that
real estate law is one of the areas of law
that attracts the highest incidents of
errors and omission claims. In my opinion, lawyers ought to be increasing the
legal fees charged for real estate transactions, not decreasing them. In our office, it is often the case that once a deal
is closed and the client moves into their
new home; should anything go wrong,
their first instinct is to call the lawyer –
not the real estate agent. We have had
clients calling for issues, such as:
- Appliances not working;
- Roaches and bugs in the property;
- Cracks in the garage;
- Garbage left behind;
- Dirty Carpets;
- Toilets not working etc.
In all of the above instances, the
purchasers never thought to call the real
estate agent; their go-to-person is the
lawyer who closed the deal, but let’s be
realistic, the lawyer would have never
visited the property.
As I stated, I have a lot of friends
who are real estate agents and brokers;
I mean no disrespect but hey, you all
are just changing too much! To those
lawyers who are changing basement
prices for real estate transactions – stop
selling yourself so cheap! To the members of the public, who are buying and
selling real estate – shop around for a
good agent, and negotiate the commissions to be paid.
When choosing a lawyer to close the
deal, remember you are buying a house –
not running shoes. You spend thousands
of dollars to someone to help you find the
home; so remember, do not balk at paying
a lawyer a few hundred dollars to ensure
that the transaction is completed properly.
As in all things, you get what you pay for
and the cheapest price does not always
translate into the best service.
The foregoing is intended for information purposes only and you should
consult a lawyer if you need legal representation or a legal opinion.
Selwyn R. Baboolal is a partner at OB
Law Chambers practicing in the area of
litigation for the past 21 years.
The Advantages Of Buying
Pre-Constructed Condos
In Toronto
Beths Suepaul
B
uying a home is one of
life’s biggest decisions.
It ranks right up there
with selecting a career path,
and choosing a spouse. However,
rising prices for single-family homes
in large cities, combined with Canada’s
reputation as a safe haven from global
financial storms, have driven condo
development in Toronto, attracting
young professionals, aging boomers,
and investors. Downtown Toronto is
the most popular location, accounting
for nearly 50% of all new condominium
sales in the GTA.
As an informed consumer, you are
fortunate to have several choices depending on your budget, and personal
preferences. One option you have as a
first time home buyer, retiree, or investor
is purchasing a pre-constructed condo.
Buying in the pre-construction phase
is still a great opportunity. New condominium sales remain relatively strong,
despite recent economic challenges.
Why is buying a pre-constructed
condo a viable investment?
One of the best benefits realized by
investing money in pre-constructed
condos in Toronto is that often the initial price for such condos is lower than
for ones already completed. Hence, you
have the opportunity to take advantage
of market appreciation.
With a few financial institutions, it is
still possible to lock-in today’s low mortgage rates until final closing.
As the building is brand new, this
gives you the ability to select your finishes, and customize certain items, such
as appliances, cabinetry, flooring etc.
As the deposit to the builder is staggered over a period, you have time to save
money for the payments and final closing.
Generally, the deposit to the builder adds
up to about 20% of the purchase price by
the time of occupancy, depending on the
builder’s deposit structure.
Such an investment can enhance your
long-term financial outlook.
Increasing concern for our environment entices builders to develop ‘Greener’
buildings, using the latest construction
materials. For the most part, this ensures
that systems are more energy efficient,
resulting in lower maintenance fees.
If you are considering purchasing a
pre-constructed condo, it is a good idea
to consult with your Real Estate Broker
and your financial planner to determine
the best possible option for your investment. Whether you will live in your new
condo as a first- time home buyer, keep
it for retirement, or rent it out, you will
come out a winner…
The information contained in this
article does not constitute legal or financial advice. The author makes no claims
about its accuracy, completeness, or
up-to-date character, and that applies to
any site linked to this article as well.
Beths Suepaul (www.bethssuepaul.com)
is a Real Estate Broker with RE/MAX
Realty Specialists Inc. with over 10 years
experience. She is committed to making
Your Buying, Selling and Investing in
Real Estate pain free, and successful.
Having a hard time finding
and buying that hidden gem?
Call now if it's out there
together we can find it!
Charles Dow 416-838-2616
Sales Representative Right At Home Realty Inc.
cdow@trebnet.com
www.CharlesDow.ca
Buying strategies and
recommendations
Not intended to solicit Purchasers under Purchaser/Agency agreement or properties currently listed for sale.
April 8, 2015
PAGE 15
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Belly Bustas: Take 4!
Ticket To
heaven
A man died and went to The
Judgment, they told him ,
“Before you meet with God, I
should tell you — we’ve looked
over your life, and to be honest
you really didn’t do anything
particularly good or bad. We’re
not really sure what to do with
you. Can you tell us anything
you did that can help us make
a decision?”
The newly arrived soul thought
for a moment and replied,
“Yeah, once I was driving along
and came upon a person who
was being harassed by a group
of thugs. So I pulled over, got
out a bat, and went up to the
leader of the thugs. He was a
big, muscular guy with a ring
pierced through his lip. Well, I
tore the ring out of his lip, and
told him he and his gang had
better stop bothering this guy
or they would have to deal with
me!”
“Wow that’s impressive,
“When did this happen?”
“About three minutes ago,”
came the reply.
Unfortunate Reality
A man wasn’t feeling well so
he went to the doctor. After
examining him the doctor took
his wife aside, and said, “your
husband has a very sensitive
heart. I am afraid he’s not going to make it, unless you treat
him like a king, which means
you are at his every beck and
call, 24 hours a day and that
he doesn’t have to do anything
himself. On the way home the
husband asked with a note of
concern “what did he say?”
“Well”, the lady responded,
“he said it looks like you probably won’t make it.”
Chronic Hypochondria
Brian, one of the worlds greatest hypochondriacs, bumped
into his Dr. one day at the
supermarket.
“Doc!” Brian exclaimed, “I’ve
been meaning to tell you, remember those voices I kept on
hearing in my head? I haven’t
heard them in over a week!”
“Wow! What wonderful news
Brian! I’m so happy for you!”
his Dr. exclaimed.
“Wonderful?” asked a dismal
looking Brian. “There’s nothing
wonderful about it. I’m afraid
my hearing is starting to go
now!
Male Marriage Criteria
“Mom, Dad, sit down. I have
something very important to
tell you,” said Samantha, upon
her return home from college after graduation. “I met
a guy who lives near the college that I really like and we
decided we are going to get
married!”
“Oh Samantha! I am so happy
for you!” Gushed her Mom giving her a big hug, “I hope you
two will be really happy togeth-
er! I can’t wait to meet him!”
“Tell us more about him” said
her Dad, “does he have any
money?”
“Oh Dad! Is that all you men
ever think about?
That was the first question he
asked me about you too!”
Groom’s Happiest Day Ever
Harry was finally a groom and
was very excited about his
upcoming marriage. He was
on his way out of the office
when his boss came over to
him with an outstretched hand,
“congratulations Harry, I just
wanted to tell you I’ve been
married for twenty two years,
and I am sure that you will
always remember this day with
the fondest of memories, as
the happiest day of your life.”
“But sir”, said Harry, “a little bit
confused, I’m not getting married until tomorrow!” “Yeah, I
know”, said his boss.
PAGE 16
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
HEALTH MATTERS
Ouch!! That hurts. Do I have A Cavity?
Dr. Richard Lai
Dental Surgeon
W
hen pain is felt on a
tooth it doesn’t always
mean that you have a
cavity and that the only remedy
is to get a filling done. What you
are experiencing could be tooth
sensitivity.
Tooth sensitivity can be on one tooth
or on multiple teeth in the same area.
Just the thought of the sharp pain that
shoots straight into your teeth when
you eat or drink something hot, cold,
sweet or sour makes you cringe. Sometimes just breathing with your mouth
open on a cold winter day causes that
sudden pain.
This sensitivity is a result of worn
down tooth enamel or exposed tooth
roots known as dentin. The dentin
is the softer layer that makes up the
inside structure that surrounds the
nerve of the tooth. The reason for the
sensitivity is the dentin is actually
composed of tiny pores or tubes that
lead directly to the nerve. So when you
eat something that is hot, cold, sweet
or sour these tubes allow items to
stimulate the nerve causing a painful
reaction.
Exposure of the dentin can occur due
to a number of factors. Some of the more
common reasons are:
• Brushing your teeth too hard or using a hard-bristled toothbrush.
• Brushing with very abrasive
toothpaste (i.e. some whitening
toothpastes).
• Inflamed and sore gums (i.e. gum
disease/gingivitis) will pull back and
expose the roots of your teeth which is
called gum recession.
• Grinding or clenching your teeth
may wear down the enamel and expose
the dentin. This action may actually
case most or all of your teeth to feel
sensitive.
Music’s Positive Impact
On Kids’ Learning and
Social Behavior!
Dr George Traitses
Multiple Offers,
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• Tooth decay near the gum line.
• Acidic food and drinks (i.e. carbonated cola’s, citrus fruits, tomatoes
and pickles) cause enamel erosion and
dentin exposure.
• A fractured or chipped tooth might
expose the dentin.
Don’t worry, there is good news…The
good news is there are many ways to
control sensitive teeth. You can try some
of the following:
• Brush with a soft-bristled toothbrush gently and carefully around the
gum line so you don’t remove gum
tissue.
• Avoid eating highly acidic foods and
drinks.
• Use fluoridated toothpastes and
mouth rinses daily. Ask your dentist
about products that are available for
home use.
• Use a toothpaste for sensitive teeth.
You may need to try several brands
before you find the one that works best
for you.
• If you suspect that you are grinding
your teeth ask your dentist about getting
a night guard.
If you are still in discomfort, please
speak with your dentist about using
a composite resin material to cover
the exposed root surface or a fluoride
varnish or dentin sealer to apply on the
exposed root surface.
C
hildren love music; just
do a keyword search of
children and dancing on
YouTube and you’ll find a lot of
smiling faces. But beyond enjoyment, music also positively
impacts learning and social
behavior in children, according
to the International Journal of
Music Education. The recent study indicates that language development, literacy, numeracy,
creativity, fine motor coordination, concentration, self-confidence, emotional
sensitivity, social skills, teamwork, selfdiscipline, and relaxation are all tied to
playing and listening to music.
Music Training = Brain Training According to a study performed at
the Boston Children’s Hospital, early
musical training enhances the areas
of the brain responsible for executive
functioning, which enables information processing and retention, regulates
behavior, and is responsible for problem
solving and planning, as well as other
cognitive processes.
The study took musically trained
children, ages nine to 12, who received
at least two years of private lessons,
and compared them with children in
the same age range that had no musical training, concluding that children
with musical training had enhanced
activity levels in the prefrontal cortex.
Long-term results include heightened
IQs, stronger SAT scores and an overall
better academic performance.
Music Therapy and Behavior
Another study, which took place
at Queen’s University in Belfast, Ireland,
focused solely on children and adolescents with emotional, developmental
and/or behavioral problems. Two hundred fifty-one children were
divided into two groups; 128 received traditional care, while the other 123 received
music therapy in addition to traditional
care. The study concluded that music
therapy reduces depression and even
improves self-esteem, in comparison to
those who only received traditional care.
The participants also had improved communicative and interactive skills.
Music programs often seem to be
among the first to go when schools make
funding cuts, but perhaps these collective study findings will give music – and
the children who benefit from it – a
fighting chance.
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Death and taxes
Plan ahead to minimize taxes on death
the time the asset is gifted is greater
than its ACB. As a result, this strategy
works best if the assets you’re giving
away are likely to grow in value in the
• RESPs future. • ETFs
N
• RRSPs
• INSURANCE
• MUTUAL FUNDS
• TFSAs
• STOCKsChoose beneficiaries
• GICs
• RRIFs
carefully
•
BONDs
•
RDSPs
obody likes to think
To maximize tax deferral, you could
about their
death, but
leave assets that have appreciated in
Investments,
Retirements,
Isa M. Rahamat
who wants to pay more
value to your spouse first, if you can. If
Financial Advisor
Life
Insurance
tax
thanAdvisor
they have to? With a
you’re going to leave assets to others, it’s
It’s now
time to
to relax
and getleaving
away from
it
little planning, you
canAutumn
help— for many abest
consider
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asall. So while you might take a vacation, your money never should.
minimize the taxes
your
estate
sets,
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as
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Guaranteed
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Cellular: (416)
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are deemed E-mail:
to be disposed
of at the
Make the most of exemptions
Isa.Rahamat@manulifesecurities.ca
deceased’s adjusted cost base (ACB
The two most common exemptions are:
– see sidebar), thereby deferring tax
1. The principal residence exemption,
until that spouse (or trust) sells the
which can be used to offset the capital
assets, or until the surviving spouse’s
gains on one property you own. This
death.
could be your home, but it could also be
a cottage or other second property that
Give assets away
you ordinarily inhabit (rental properties
If you actually dispose of assets before
do not qualify).
your death, your estate will avoid the
2. The enhanced capital gains exemppotential tax bill on death.
tion, which can be used to offset up
If you have already decided who will to $750,000 of capital gains on your
receive certain assets, and will not
shares in certain private companies, a
have to use those assets to fund your
qualifying farm or fishing property.
day-to-day living expenses, you might
consider giving those assets away dur- Give to charity
ing your lifetime.
You can choose to give to charity on
Giving assets away is generally
your death (usually via your will). Your
considered a disposition for tax purestate will be able to claim a donation
poses, and therefore could give rise
tax credit for the fair market value of
to a tax bill if the fair market value at
the gift on your final tax return.
Mortgages - Did You
know? Part 3
PAGE 17
MONEY MATTERS
File multiple tax returns
In the year of death, four tax returns
can potentially be filed. A claim can
be made for some personal tax credits,
such as the basic personal amount, on
each of the returns filed, effectively multiplying the number of credits claimed.
In addition, your estate benefits from
the lower graduated tax rates more than
once in the year of death.
Buy life insurance
Once you’ve done all you can to minimize your tax liability on death, you
may want to consider life insurance to
assist in funding your estate’s eventual
tax liability. This helps to ensure that
your heirs will be left with as much of
the estate proceeds as possible, and that
your assets will not have to be liquidated in order to pay your estate’s tax bill.
Ideal candidates for these
strategies
The people who will benefit most from
these strategies are individuals with assets that will attract taxes on death who
want to:
• Understand the income tax implications on death related to those assets
• Minimize or reduce their estate’s
income tax bill on death and leave more
assets to their heirs
Take action
If this applies to you, then:
• Identify assets that may present tax
planning opportunities
• Consider one or more of these strate-
gies to reduce taxes on death
• Review your estate plan with a tax or
legal advisor
Finally, get advice from a tax professional if you have any questions about
how to minimize the taxes your estate
might pay at death.
Isa Rahamat is a Financial Advisor
with Manulife Securities Inc. His email
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Family and Cosmetic Dentistry
The third installment of the “Did You Know” series…
to repay the amount borrowed.
• The maximum that can be
refinanced with a Schedule
A Lender is up to 80% of the
property value. The one exception is where there is a marital
breakdown and a property can
be refinanced up to 95% with an
insurer. For example, if a home
is worth $500,000, the maximum amount that the borrower
can refinance their home is up
to $400,000. (Where there is
a marital break down, up to
$475,000).
• Many lenders allow clients to
prepay their mortgage sometimes
up to 20% of the original mortgage amount and increase their
payments up to 20% without incurring a penalty. So on a mortgage balance of $350,000, a borrower may prepay up to $70,000
during a calendar year. In addition, the client may increase their
mortgage payment (for example
$1,500 up to $1,800).
When purchasing a home, always be sure to get your finances
in order in advance. Speak to
your mortgage advisor and they’ll
be sure to provide you with the
right steps to making your home
purchase a smooth process.
• There is a Home Buyers Program
that allows a first time homebuyer to use up to $25,000 of their
RRSP’s as a down payment without
having to pay tax on the amount
withdrawn. The buyer has 15 years
Asif A. Kasim is a mortgage agent
with DLC’s The Integrity Professionals Inc. (Powered by Bedrock
Financial Inc Lic. 12275) – asif.
kasim@live.com or 416.561.1258 or
www.theintegrityprofessionals.com
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PAGE 18
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
Festival Dumplings Now A Favored
Caribbean Treat!
Chef Phillip Hendricks
A
once maligned and
oft ridiculed item,
this simple treat
has found its way into the
‘darling bosom’ of many a
West Indian and more so,
into a vast array of ethnic
and indigenous cultures.
The lowly (neigh) stately
‘Fry Bake’ has evolved into
many variations, textures &
shapes. Comprising mainly
of two basic ingredients
(water and flour) this inexpensive ‘Dumpling’ has cre-
ated a ‘Festival’ of a stir in
culinary circles everywhere.
Pan fried, deep fried,
baked or steamed, the
outcome has identified
itself with numerous titles.
Added ingredients over
decades such as cod fish,
green onions, ‘bully beef’,
pumpkin, corn meal etc.
have caused the end result
to command attention on
menus from east to west
and all points in between.
FESTIVAL DUMPLINGS
Ingredients:
- 2 cups of Flour
- 1 teaspoon of Sea Salt
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April 8, 2015
conut Milk, kneading until
dough holds together.
3. Knead dough until
smooth and divide into
6 or more equal pieces;
shape in long dumplings.
4. Heat cooking oil on
High in deep frying pan
and place the Festival
If you prefer a lighter Fes- Dumplings in the pan one
tival dumpling: use 3 Tbsp at a time.
5. Reduce heat to Meof cornmeal instead and
adjust the amount of water dium and turn Festival
needed to bind the dough dumplings every few minutes until they are brown
on all sides and are cooked
through; they will expand
Method
as they cook.
1. Mix dry ingredients
Best accompanied with
together
2. A bit at a time, add Co- jerk chicken or jerk pork.
- ½ cup of Cornmeal
- 2 tablespoons of Sugar
- ¾ cup of Coconut Milk or
- Water
- ¼ teaspoon of Nutmeg or
- Cinnamon - 1 tablespoon of Baking Powder
April 8, 2015
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
New Rule
For PCL
Draft
Kalli Back Home To
Coach Youths
H
eeding the resounding
calls from our cricketing
public, the administrators of the game of cricket in
Guyana, the Guyana Cricket
Board (GCB), has responded in
excellent fashion by attracting
one of the most accomplished
Guyana and West Indies batsmen Alvin Kallicharran to come
and work with our youths in
Guyana. All Guyanese would recall the
excellent performances of the country’s
Under-15 and Under-19 teams last year in
the Regional West Indies Cricket Board
(WICB) tournaments and the GCB has
pulled off another major coup in being
able to secure the expert services of none
other than our own Alvin Kallicharran.
The GCB is very serious of its cricket
development programme in spite of
all the challenges being faced by this
Board and the relentless ridicule vented
by a few misguided persons. GCB has
now expanded its cricket development
programme with this bold move. This
is the first time that the administration
would be bringing an ‘overseas coach’ to
Guyana’s shores to be part of our youth
cricket development programme.
He would share his expertise with
our youths during the period, April 5th
to May 4th 2015. Kalli is going to work
mainly with the Under-15s and the under-17s and will travel around the country to conduct special clinics at various
locations with the main objective being
to motivate and galvanise the youths
back towards the game of cricket.
The GCB has strategically planned
Kallicharran’s visit to coincide with the
conclusion of the under-15 and under-17
inter-county tournaments and a few
short months away from the WICB Regional tournaments in the summer.
The GCB in a release further noted
that they remain steadfastly committed
to rolling out its strategic plan for the
complete overhaul of our cricket as we
continue to build on our successes from
last year and prepare our teams to be
more successful this year and beyond.
Another very innovative experiment
started last year by the GCB, which has al-
ready been reaping rich dividends, is having
the Under-19 team play in the Senior Intercounty tournaments as the 4th team.
The experiment is being replicated at
the other age-group levels with the under-15 team playing as the 4th team in the
Inter-county under-17 tournament and
the under-7 team play as the 4th team in
the Inter-county Under-19 tournament.
According to the GCB, this innovation
provides the lower age group to compete
at a higher level thus forcing them to
elevate the standard of their game and
can only benefit them and improve their
confidence whilst preparing them for
higher level competitiveness.
“Kallicharran has always been
recognised as one of the most talented
and complete batsmen of his time and
has conquered many top notch bowlers
around the world, both spinners and
faster bowlers, during his illustrious
cricketing career which spanned from
1966 to 1992” the GCB.
Kallicharran was the first youth team
captain for Guyana that participated in
the Regional tournament in 1966, and he
made his debut for the West Indies team
in 1972 against New Zealand where he
registered his maiden century in his very
first Test match. He scored his second
Test century before that series ended and
chalked up six centuries in his first 22
tests. He plied his trade in the English
County circuit for several years playing for Warwickshire until 1992 which
surely enhanced his game over the years.
Kallicharran turned out for the Australian State of Queensland for a while and
Transvaal in South Africa.
His Test career was cut short in 1981
at the ripe age of 32 when he surely had
several more years of quality cricket left
in him. He played 6 Tests with 4,399
runs at an average close to 45 and 12
centuries. Kallicharran possibly had the
record for the most 90s during his Test
playing career.
He also finished his first-class career
with a phenomenal 32,000 runs and 87
centuries just missing the 100 centuries
mark by one; stranded on 99! Kallicharran was the Wisden Cricketer of the
Year 1983.
A new rule mandating franchises
to select at least two players outside of their territories will come
into effect when the draft for the
second edition of the Professional
Cricket League (PCL) takes place
later this year.President of the
West Indies Cricket Board (WICB)
Dave Cameron says decision on
the new rule was reached during a
recent meeting of the WICB.
The WICB has expressed disappointment with last October’s draft
for the inaugural PCL with only one
team selecting a player outside its
territory.
“As a board we were disappointed. So this is what we have done.
Coming out of that meeting we
have agreed that you must select
at least two players from outside
of your territory, going forward,”
Cameron said on the regional television sports programme Big Bang.
“And remember the PCL is new,
our view …let’s get it on the road
and let’s tweak it as we go along
Initially, only two players – former Guyana and West Indies
captain Ramnaresh Sarwan and
Barbados All-rounder Raymon
Reifer-were selected by franchises
outside of their territories during
PAGE 19
the first PCL draft.
However, Ramnaresh subsequently withdrew from the Trinidad
and Tobago squad citing personal
reasons while Reifer was a star performer for the Guyana Jaguars who
ran away with the title.
“So the first rule is that come later
this year when we have the draft you
must select at least two players from
outside of your region and that’s a
minimum. So in the case of leeward
etc. could be much more than that
as we strengthen that franchise to
make sure that they can compete
next year,” said Cameron in his first
television interview since being reelected for another two year term.
“So we are mindful. Should we
just jump down the road and make
it free agency? I am sure that will
come at some point. But it’s going
to take some talking to”.
Meantime the Leeward Islands
Cricket Association (LICA), which
will have an option to select at least
three players, has welcomed the
new rule for the PCL draft.
“The West Indies Cricket Board is
going to be insisting that two players must be (selected) from outside
of the territories as part of the draft
selections,” said LICA President
Auckland Hector.
“In the case of the Leeward Islands who are at the bottom of this
year’s tournament, we would be
allowed a minimum of three players outside of our territory, and we
are going to have the first option
of the draft”.
Narine
Cleared!
S
unil Narine will play the IPL
this season for Kolkata Knight
Riders after the BCCI’s subcommittee dealing with suspect
actions gave him a clean chit.
Narine had taken a retest at Sri Ramachandra University, an ICC-accredited
centre, on Thursday where he was put
through various tests by the panel
comprising former India captain S Venkataraghavan, former India fast bowler
Javagal Srinath and ex-international
umpire AV Jayaprakash.
“The committee concluded that Mr. Sunil
Narine, who had remodelled his bowling
action, was within the ICC approved limits
for all types of deliveries that were assessed
and has hence recommended to the BCCI,
that his name may be removed from the
warning list of bowlers with suspect action,”
a BCCI press release said.
This means Narine will be available for selection for the defending
champions who play the tournament
opener against Mumbai Indians at Eden
Gardens on April 8, and in all BCCIorganised tournaments henceforth.
Narine was first called for a suspect
action last October during the Champions League T20. Subsequently he was
asked by the BCCI to get it tested at any
of the ICC-accredited centres with a
rider saying that he would need to travel
to Chennai centre if the panel deemed
fit. Objecting to this condition, Knight
Riders management sought the intervention of BCCI president Jagmohan
Dalmiya and lodged a protest.
It was Dalmiya who made the first call
to Knight Riders to inform that Narine
was cleared. “The work has been done.
Sunil Narine has been cleared,” Dalmiya
told ESPNcricinfo.
Venky Mysore, the Knight Riders’
chief executive, said the franchise was
relieved that Narine, their premier
match-winner, was available to play
again. “It is a matter of genuine relief.
We are very thankful to the BCCI president, secretary and other board officials
for bringing the matter reach the appropriate conclusion
PAGE 20
CARIBBEAN GRAPHIC
April 8, 2015