Cabinet contends that all MPs must submit declarations
– Dr Luncheon
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
The obligation of senior officials in public offices to submit their list of income and assets to the Integrity Commission as required under the Integrity Commission Act of Guyana was discussed in Cabinet at its January 26 meeting.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon during a media briefing today at the Office of the President said that Cabinet considers some Members of Parliament (MPs) who have to date not been compliant as shameful.
The Act which was passed in 1997 requires that a specific list of office holders declare their list of income and assets to the Integrity Commission. Failure to do so will result in a fine of $25,000 and imprisonment for six months. MPs are the first group of senior officials to submit their list of income and assets.
Head of State Bharrat Jagdeo had recently announced that MPs, both government and opposition would be given two weeks to make their submissions or face the law.
His comments were met by strong criticism by some opposition members who questioned the President’s actions, authority and the constitutionality of the Integrity Commission.
Cabinet has taken note of the body of arguments that arose that was “foisted on the public to accept and even glorify the action of those who are non compliant MPs with the law,” Dr. Luncheon said.
“The bigger picture is the effort to confuse the law about the primacy of disclosure of financial assets of public officials and to create some ambiguity about a commitment to this fundamental aspect of accountability,” the HPS asserted.
He added that the detractors who are attempting to undermine the application of the law are doing so because of the level of accountability and prevention of corruption in public office which the compliance will bring.
“Cabinet noted strangely that many who are maligning the actions of the administration with regards to enforcing compliance with the law, were yesterday the champions of accountability in public office,” Dr Luncheon said.
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President to address World Economic Forum
…. will advance Guyana’s position on Avoided Deforestation
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
 President Bharrat Jagdeo is slated to address the gathering of world leaders tomorrow at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland where he will advocate for incentives for the preservation of rainforests.
The President is among 41 of the world’s leaders attending the forum during the period January 28 to February 1. He will be among those who will make presentations at tomorrow’s session which include Kofi Annan President, Global Humanitarian Forum, Switzerland, Raj Singh Chief Risk Officer, Swiss Reinsurance Company USA, Ajit Gulabchand Chairman and Managing Director, Hindustan Construction Company Ltd. India.
The WEF bears the theme ‘Shaping the Post Crisis World’ and will address issues of climate change, global crisis and economic reform among others.
Tomorrow’s session which is titled “Climate Justice: Basis of a new Global Solidarity”, is co-organized with the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches (SEK-FEPS) and the Global Humanitarian Forum. The following issues are on the agenda for the session.
- What is the most equitable solution to the injustices of climate change?
- What overlap exists between adaptation and development? To what extent can compensation and assistance in dealing with climate change also contribute to development?
- What scope is there for action at the international level to ensure protection of the most vulnerable populations and to reduce emissions sufficiently to deal with climate change and the suffering it causes?
- How can such responsibility -- "climate justice" -- be established as a guiding principle in the ongoing negotiations for a successor to the Kyoto Protocol?
President Jagdeo at a press conference prior to his departure stated that the issue of deforestation and climate change will be discussed by several other key speakers at the forum and this he considers an important step forward in the area of avoided deforestation.
The Guyanese Leader who initiated Guyana’s position on Avoided Deforestation presented his proposal in December 2008 where he outlined how solutions to deforestation may be found and how Guyana can ensure that the world acts in a timely manner while protecting its national interest.
In 2007 the Jagdeo Initiative on Climate Change was first introduced at the Commonwealth Finance Minister Meeting in October. The initiative calls for developed countries to give market based incentives to countries which can offer their rainforest to serve in the world’s fight against climate change.
The President’s proposal gained recognition from Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, who said it is one of the most optimistic developments on the issue.
The President’s initiative was influenced by the reluctance of the developed countries to make tough decisions to combat the situation and their refusal to cut their gas emissions as stipulated in the Kyoto Protocol of 1997.
In the Global Risk Network 2009 Report for Economic Forum, Raj Singh Chief Risk Officer, Swiss Reinsurance Company USA, stated that developing countries are the ones most at risk because they lack the infrastructure and institutional framework to cope and as such are worst affected by weather-related disasters. He stressed that continuing efforts are needed to prepare, especially the developing world for the climatic changes taking place.
President Jagdeo will also be attending the Copenhagen Conference in December this year where he will join almost all the world’s leaders to forge a global deal to avert catastrophic climate change.
President Jagdeo emphasized that if the global deal fails to address deforestation it will be impossible to stabilize the world’s climate since the current Kyoto Protocol does not recognize that standing forests should qualify for carbon credits whereby countries are compensated for retaining their standing forests.
Guyana, because it has a territory of almost 80 percent rainforests, was used as a case study for what it would take to make standing tropical forests worth more, hence Guyana’s position on Avoided Deforestation.
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ERC presents Inter/Intra Community Dialogue Report in Parliament
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
The recently concluded report on the Inter/Intra Community Dialogue which was initiated after the 2008 Lusignan and Bartica massacres was presented to the National Assembly today by the Chairman of the Ethnic Relations Commission, Bishop Juan Edghill to Speaker of the house, Mr. Ralph Ramkarran.
The report is a result of dialogues held in 29 communities along the East Coast Demerara and 11 communities from Bartica. Dialogues were held in areas where the killings occurred and their surroundings.
The ERC concentrated on four areas as the objectives of the Inter/Intra Community Dialogue which were:
- to encourage the understanding, acceptance and tolerance of the diversities among ethnic groups
- to forge solidarity among ethnic groups particularly among Africans and Indians in affected areas
- to create a sense of ethnic security among groups
- to harness recommendations and suggestions for policy and behavioural changes for fostering harmonious relationships among ethnic groups.
The objectives were then used as guidelines to draw responses from participants to three questions raised in the dialogue. The first question asked participants to describe the kind of Guyana they want to live in while the second question asked participants to list perceived obstacles or constraints that will avert that desire. The third question sought to solicit suggestions to overcome those obstacles.
On presenting the report to the Speaker, Bishop Edghill said, “it is our hope that members of the National Assembly, having read and digested this information will be able to bring to the table discussions and policies to ensure that the views of the representatives of the various communities would be taken on board.”
Mr. Ramkarran thanked the members of Commission for the report and extended gratitude to the 11 participants from the various communities on the East Coast Demerara who played key roles in the Inter/Intra Community Dialogue and requested to be present at the handing over of the report.
The Inter/Intra Community Dialogue was initiated in February 2008 after calls were made for the ERC’s intervention to lessen a fear of deterioration in ethnic relations on the East Coast Demerara.
The Dialogue was launched under the theme ‘Building Trust through Dialogue’ with funding received in June 2008 from United Nations Development Programne (UNDP) to the tune $2.4M.
The brutal slayings occurred in January 2008 where 11 innocents lost their lives in the Lusignan massacre. In the Bartica massacre another 12 persons lost their lives in February.
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GHRA irresponsible, unaccountable appendage of NGO system – Dr. Luncheon
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS) and Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon told members of the media today during a press conference at the Office of the President that the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) has made some of the most unacceptable statements about government’s mandate, government’s discharge of its mandate, and its assessment without identifying how legitimate its sources were.
The HPS made these comments in response to a press release issued by the Executive Committee of the GHRA on January 22.
The Cabinet Secretary said that the GHRA made “a virtual diatribe about the management by government agencies of the recent flooding on the East Coast… the thrust of their remarks not withstanding.”
Dr. Luncheon questioned the source of the GHRA’s information which he referred to as “grossly inaccurate” and forming the basis of the press release.
“It is the administration’s contention that the GHRA has consolidated itself as an irresponsible and unaccountable appendage of the NGO system, the NGO movement in Guyana with a propensity to engage in known inaccuracies and contributing to its anti government stance,” Dr. Luncheon said.
He noted that the release contained several other inaccuracies including the unawareness that NEOC refers specifically to the National Emergency Operated Committee which is responsible for operating disaster responses and not the National Emergency Organizing Council as was outlined in the document.
The GHRA “started out on their diatribe totally confused about specifically what the NEOC meant and what it was about,” he said.
Additionally, Dr. Roger Luncheon noted that Major-General Michael Atherly was appointed as the Project Coordinator of the National Security Secretariat and not the Director General of the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) as was also inaccurately contained in the release.
“In seeking to justify Oxfam’s duplicity, Oxfam participated in the preparatory meetings that led to the constitution of the NEOC and Oxfam sat at those meetings listening to reports made by state and non state actors about assessments. Oxfam of course never ventured an opinion or made any disclosures, those members they had their own private assessments that its service was being sent overseas. This was their statement and it was not intended for domestic consumption. Oxfam essentially was of the opinion that there is an assessment that is appropriate for the locals and then there is one in principles and the fact that their assessment was totally inaccurate and probably would have been rejected at the NEOC seems to have been lost on the GHRA,” the HPS said.
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Life returns to normalcy in ECD villages
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
Life has returned to normalcy for most East Coast Demerara Villages following inundation caused by intense rainfall during December and earlier this month.
Roopnarine Latchman, a Bee Hive resident told the Government Information Agency (GINA) when it visited several areas on January 28, that he was in the process of replanting as the water had receded since three weeks ago. He said he is contemplating preventative mechanisms against rainfall affecting his crops again.
Roopnarine Latchman of Beehive, ECD pointing to his garden that he is now preparing
Cecley Baksh, said she will wait until August to raise her chicken pen since the rainy season was not yet over while Prem Nauth, a coconut vendor said in preparation for any adverse weather conditions, he has begun some concrete work.
In Dochfour, Rajin and Tony Ramsood were seen preparing the soil in their garden to plant some cucumbers. They said everything was back to normal and that they would be cleaning the trenches around their farm to ensure proper drainage.
Dochfour residents Rajin and Tony Ramsood preparing their land to plant cucumbers since the waters had receded
Dawn Washington, another Dochfour resident said that her community was recuperating and residents have been returning to their farmlands. She advised that persons should try and build their chicken and other animal pens higher in case of any adverse weather conditions. She also called on the community to help with drainage.
Totally dry - A street in Bee Hive, which had experienced some accumulation
Janet Doodnauth, who is a cash crop farmer in the area, stated that she has also begun replanting.
At Dazzell Housing Scheme, Rudolph McPherson, noted that the water has receded but there was a problem with animals in the community as these were destroying the drainage structures. He called on the relevant authorities to intervene.
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Importation of sugar to meet domestic demands-Dr. Luncheon
-external arrangements with overseas markets will continue
Georgetown, GINA, January29, 2009
The commercial, business, trade and other trade deals will continue despite the recent move to import sugar, Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon has said.
This move according to Dr. Luncheon was made to offset the consequences of the end of the second crop, which inevitably results in a shortfall in the amount of sugar to satisfy both external markets.
Guyana has been experiencing a period of heavy rainfall since the beginning of December 2008 and government has been undertaking several measures to compensate for its impact on certain crops.
Intense rainfall compounded by technical problems experienced by the Skeldon Factory resulted in a catastrophic drop in cane production during last year. The sugar sector contributes 16 percent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Guyana loses an estimated US $40M per year in revenue as a result of the cut in prices by the European Union.
President Bharat Jagdeo had met with the managers of GuySuCo to discuss the problems faced and he urged that they fix them since they have been recurring over the years. The President had called for the establishment of an interim board and management to respond better to this situation. The Interim Board will be in place from February 14.
Its members have to come up with a turn-around plan that would show the need to cut expenditure and then refocus expenditure on growing cane and fixing a number of problems, the had said earlier this month.
Sugar exports for 2008 to the European Union (EU) and other Caribbean Markets totalled 205,332 tonnes. The production figure for 2008 was 226,500.
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2009 Explore Guyana magazine launched
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
Destination Guyana, is a little country on the coast of South America that offers visitors an experience that will forever be printed in their memory, an experience filled with supreme beauty which captures the lush fauna and flora, undulating mountains, diverse culture and a people renowned for their hospitality.
This and more will once again be showcased to the world with the launch of the new 2009 Explore Guyana magazine under the theme The Amazon Adventure; Experience for yourself today at the Roraima Duke Lodge, Kingston, Georgetown.
Acting President, Samuel Hinds and Publisher of the magazine, Lokesh Singh unveil the 2009 edition of the Explore Guyana
Acting President, Samuel Hinds noted that tourism in Guyana has the potential to become one of its leading industries and in this regard it requires Guyanese to develop a welcoming attitude to visitors, and while the country has the reputation of being hospitable its people should strive for more.
The Acting President praised the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) for the production of the magazine which is in its 14th year.
THAG’s President, Renata Chuck-A-Sang, alluded to the present financial crisis being faced globally, but noted however, that Guyana is in “a position to really develop our niche markets, regarding our eco, rugged and adventure products.”
While the hospitality industry is dealing with less cash flow, Chuck-A-Sang noted that it needs to be resilient. “We expect, hope and advocate for a better enhanced and strengthened environment … so that we can have sustained development.”
A section of the gathering at the magazine’s launch
She noted that the magazine has not been without challenges and called on the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce to further the collaboration to ensure that there is a greater development in the industry. “In Guyana tourism is a work in progress and it is necessary for us to work together to develop this product.”
The magazine this year has taken a different approach as it allowed the people who have experienced the country’s wonders to share their experience. Prior to this most of the articles were written by third parties.
Chairman of the Private Sector Commission, Gerald Gouveia recalled that there was a time in Guyana’s history when tourism was shunned by the Government of the day. However, the present administration is “on-board today and very passionate” about the industry as there is a “great relationship and we are very happy with this that is shared with the stakeholders especially with the Tourism Ministry and the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA).”
GTA Director, Indranauth Haralsingh described the magazine as a much needed marketing tool to assist in promoting the country. He also said that the GTA will also be producing a magazine that will complement that of the Explore Guyana magazine.
Acting President, Samuel Hinds browsing the magazine, also in picture is Lokesk Singh
Chuck-A-Sang also noted also that “Our President Bharrat Jagdeo, at this time is addressing the World Economic Forum and we are proud of this achievement; we hope that it will signal a new resolve, to bring a new way in which we look at climate change and regard our forest.”
It is also noteworthy that the 100-page magazine is filled with mesmerizing pictures and intriguing articles that were mainly produced locally. It abounds with beautiful pictures of birds, animals, flowers and nature experiences of travellers to some of the country’s exotic destinations.
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Police to clamp down on lewd drawings, slogans on minibuses
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
The Guyana Police Force will be targeting mini-buses which have drawings and slogans which are in some instances of a lewd nature in wake of an amendment made to the Road Service Licence.
In a press release issued this evening, the Police Public Relations Office advised that in furtherance of its new traffic management plan, an amendment has been made to Clause 14 of the Road Service Licence for mini-buses which deals with this issue.
The newly amended Clause of the Road Service Licence for mini-buses now reads as follows:
“No writing, marking, drawing or other material shall be placed on a motor vehicle except those approved by the prescribed authority.
(1) Materials approved by the prescribed authority will include the prescribed colour code and number, registration number, zone, seating capacity and destination."
However, owners and/or operators of mini-buses are being given a grace period up to February 15, 2009, by which time they are expected to comply with the amendment.
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National Assembly approves formation of security sector oversight committee
- AFC, GAP/ROAR support Bill
Georgetown, GINA, January 29, 2009
The National Assembly today passed the Constitutional (Amendment) Bill 4/2009 which gives effect to an agreement reached at the multi-stakeholder consultation hosted by President Bharrat Jagdeo following the massacres at Lusignan and Bartica last year.
The Bill, tabled by Attorney General Doodnauth Singh, sought to amend the constitution to provide for the establishment of a Parliamentary Oversight Committee on the Security Sector having responsibility for the policies and administration of the disciplined forces of Guyana.
The Attorney General, in his presentation, pointed out that even though the amendment did not require a two-thirds majority to be passed, efforts were made by Government to achieve consensus. He pointed out that the draft Bill and an accompanying Motion which was circulated among the political parties in the House since June last did not receive the approval of all.
He said that the Bill was however being presented to the House as the matter of contention seemed to be related to the Motion which would outline the composition and ‘terms-of-reference’ of the oversight committee. The Motion was withheld to facilitate consensus.
People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Member Winston Murray posited that the stakeholders’ agreement had mandated that the security sector oversight committee to be established would have a broader parameter than was outlined in the Bill. He said that the Bill seemed to be limiting the committee to the Disciplined Services while removing the powers of the Committee to summon the Minister with responsibility for National Security from answering to it. He recommended that the Bill be deferred until consensus could be met.
People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member Gail Teixeira said that the implementation of any security sector oversight committee required trust between the parties involved. She said that Guyana was entering ‘uncharted waters’ as this provision was not catered for in any other CARICOM country and in very few Commonwealth states.
Chronicling the efforts to reach consensus on this Bill, she said that no serious effort was made by the PNCR to reach consensus given that the Bill was first circulated in June last year and notice was given since last November that the Bill would be brought to the House. In addition, the Bill was on the Order Paper since last Thursday and approaches could have been made to seek clarification thus a deferral, as requested by Murray, would not have made a difference other than serve to delay the Bill.
The ‘terms of reference’ and the composition which are still to be agreed on will be dealt with in a subsequent Motion which would be laid in the House when there is agreement on these issues by the Parliamentary Parties, she assured.
Leader of the Alliance For Change (AFC) Raphael Trotman in his submission detailed the history of the efforts to establish some form of Parliamentary oversight committee for the security sector from 1998. He said that at that time the idea was forwarded by the hierarchy of the security sector. He expressed his party’s support for the Bill after recommending some amendments.
He said that there were many unsuccessful efforts, prior to now, to institutionalize oversight of the disciplined services as it was recommended by different reports and recognized as necessary by security agencies themselves.
He posited that the successful implementation of the stakeholders’ agreement would be in the Motion which would set out the terms of reference and not the Bill which outlined broad parameters for the establishment of the Committee.
Everall Franklin of the GAP/ROAR and Leader of The United Force and Minister of Labour Manzoor Nadir, who attended the stakeholders’ consultation, expressed their parties’ support for the Bill. It was felt that giving effect to the stakeholder agreement was the ‘right thing to do’.
PPP/C Member Donald Ramotar opined that the focus of the agreement was on internal security and did not venture into the area of border security which the PNCR was recommending be included in the Bill.
Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee appealing to the PNCR to support the Bill said that the constituents that they represented wanted a nation at peace with itself. He urged that they take a nationalistic approach to the Bill as it did not seek to divide and should not be a matter of controversy.
Pointing to the advantages of the Bill, the Home Affairs Minister said that it would provide greater accountability and allow the infusion of a higher standard of service for the ranks in the forces.
However, Leader of the Opposition Robert Corbin argued that the Bill was another attempt by the PPP/C administration to score cheap political points as he felt that they had no serious intention of implementing the provisions in the stakeholders’ agreement.
He said that without the terms of reference it was difficult to support the Bill as his party would not have the benefit of seeing how the Bill would be operationalised. He urged that the Bill be deferred to a select committee for further consideration.
The Attorney General in his summation argued that there was no need for the Bill to be deferred since the issues being raised by the Opposition would be dealt with in the Motion.
Having inserted the amendments proposed by the Leader of the AFC, the Bill was read for the third time and passed.
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