The Week-in-Review - March 28 to April 4

Health

Only essential services to operate, nationwide curfew from 6 pm to 6 am under month-long lockdown - In order to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), government has announced a onemonth countrywide lockdown effective from Friday, with a 6pm to 6am curfew and a restriction on services except for those deemed essential.

The “emergency measures” are being effected under an order in the name of Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence pursuant to an earlier direction by President David Granger, given under the Public Health Ordinance. The measures, which took effect from the April 3, 2020 and will last for one month unless earlier terminated, come amid growing fears that the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to as many as 20,000 cases here by May 5th. There are also concerns that the country doesn’t have the medical facilities and personnel to deal with such a crisis. The Government has already closed schools and halted air traffic in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19 since last month. PAHO/WHO announced on Thursday that following a re-evaluation the number of projected COVID-19 cases in Guyana could reach as much 20,000 by May 5th, 2020.

PAHO projects 20,000 COVID-19 cases here by May 5th - The Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) announced on Thursday that following a re-evaluation the number of projected cases in Guyana could reach as much as 20,000 by May 5, 2020. This is an astronomic increase from the projected 1,400 cases announced previously by Minister Lawrence. In an interview with local media, the News Room, PAHO/WHO country representative Dr William Adu-Krow stressed that if Guyanese don’t begin acting differently including practising more stringent physical distancing the country could see as many as 20,000 cases of the Novel Coronavirus by next month. Adu-Krow particularly lamented that the country’s health system would not be able to handle so many sick persons. “If (a) minimum 5% of them may need intensive care where we will put them,” he asked, adding that Guyana’s health care system is significantly understaffed. The new number came after the PAHO/WHO and the Ministry conducted a disease modeling using the basic reproduction number of COVID-19. This number has been established at 2.5 persons in 4.8 days.

Four deaths from COVID-19 - Four deaths have now been attributed to COVID-19. This was confirmed by health authorities last Thursday. Up to Friday, a total of 23 cases were confirmed, with the four deaths. Shadrach Stoll, 59, of Sophia, died on Wednesday. Hours before, the third death from COVID-19, that of 78-year-old Osa Collins, of New Amsterdam, had been confirmed. The first victim, a Good Hope, East Coast Demerara woman, died on March 11th, while the second fatality, Jermaine Ifill, was recorded last Tuesday.

Pharmaceutical firm denies supplying expired HIV test kits to health ministry - Caribbean Medical Supplies Inc (CMSI) has denied allegations that it has supplied expired HIV test kits to the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) though Country Manager Devendra Rampersaud acknowledged being charged in court. “We were served with a document from the [Government Analyst-Food and Drug Department] …went to court last week,” Rampersaud told Stabroek News when contacted. “About 80 percent of the stuff that is circulating is far from the truth. The truth was manipulated. This matter stems from since 2015 and we have been working with the Ministry [of Public Health] to provide them with the documents they need. We have all the supporting documentation,” Rampersaud told Stabroek News last week. He said that his company will today issue a statement to explain the matter but he wants to make clear that, “No, we did not deliver any expired goods.” Rampersaud added that he did not want to go into detail until he had spoken to both the MoPH and the GA-FDD. This newspaper tried contacting Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence and the ministry’s Public Relations Officer Terrence Esseboom but calls to both their mobile numbers went unanswered.

Elections

GECOM to recount all 10 regions, process still to be worked out, OAS willing to send observers - For the second time in three weeks, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has agreed to have every ballot cast in the March 2 general and regional elections recounted, raising hopes that an elections crisis that has gripped the country can finally be resolved and lead to the swearing in of a President more than a month after voting. The modalities of this process, however, have not been decided. The commission had indicated that it would make these decisions on Friday afternoon but the scheduled continuation of the morning meeting was postponed since a decision was taken to “sanitize” the GECOM headquarters. No other meeting has been scheduled. In a press statement, GECOM explained that Chairperson, Justice Claudette Singh, maintained that she would be unable to renege on her undertaking to Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire to facilitate a recount and there would therefore be a recount of all the regions in chronological order, i.e. Region 1 – Region 10. The statement further explained that the decision was made against the backdrop of Article 162 (1) (b) of the Constitution of Guyana, which mandates the Commission to “take such action as appear to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness and compliance with the provisions of the Constitution.” Following the decision, Chief Election Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield was asked to provide a framework for the operationalization of the recount. In response to this direction, Lowenfield requested guidance from the Commission on a number of legal and procedural issues in relation to the recount before he could proceed to operationalize the decision.

Full Court clears way for vote recount - The Full Court last Tuesday discharged injunctions previously granted to APNU+AFC candidate Ulita Grace Moore, thereby paving the way for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to commence a recount of the votes cast at the March 2nd polls. Delivering the judgment of the Full Court, acting Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire SC, who along with Justice Nareshwar Harnanan had stayed a ruling made by Justice Holder giving himself jurisdiction to hear Moore’s matter for judicial review, said that that matter ought to have been brought by way of an elections petition. The ruling of the Chief Justice and Justice Harnanan detailed that Moore’s matter, which was before Justice Holder, could not be heard by judicial review. Moore has since appealed the decision and the Appeal Court is expected to rule today.

AFC now pressing for gov’t of national unity - While still maintaining confidence that the governing APNU+AFC coalition has won the disputed March 2nd general elections, the junior governing coalition partner AFC has said that whichever party forms the next government must show “magnanimity” and “accede” to an agreed governance pact that encompasses shared governance and “national unity”. The Alliance For Change (AFC) position comes amid the overwhelming view among local analysts that the governing coalition lost the general elections and that a rearguard rigging effort to hand them victory has been stalled by the courts and local and international condemnation. Political analysts say that the call for shared governance will ring hollow as the AFC had not pressed for this in the period prior to the election or while in government with its main coalition partner, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU). The shift in its position also comes in the wake of one of its executives, Dominic Gaskin, expressing doubt about the figures produced by controversial Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo showing that the coalition had won Region Four with a sufficiently wide margin to enable it to be the overall winner. Mingo’s figures have been lambasted and are now the subject of court hearings even as elements within the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) have been accused of attempting to blatantly rig the general elections in favour of APNU+AFC.

Business

DDL records after-tax profit of $3.48b for 2019 - Beverage giant Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) recorded another “very successful” year in 2019 with revenue topping $22.403 billion and profit after tax standing at $3.485 billion, both increasing over 2018. “I am pleased to report to shareholders that the DDL Group has enjoyed another very successful year, despite numerous challenges which had to be overcome,” Chairman Komal Samaroo said in his Chairman’s Report contained in the Group’s Annual Report for 2019. He said that during the year, the Group continued to aggressively pursue the brand development strategy of its premium El Dorado rums, which are its core business, while executing major projects aimed at improving operational efficiencies and advancing the Group’s diversification strategy. He disclosed that the Group’s turnover for 2019 was $22.403 billion compared to $21.862 billion the previous year, an increase of $541 million. Most areas recorded improvement in turnover, with the main exception being the Bulk Division, which recorded a decline of $814 million in sales. Although production in the Bulk Division was slightly higher than the previous year, a greater part of that production was set aside for ageing to support future growth in branded sales, Samaroo said. This resulted in lower volume of bulk rum being exported in 2019 and an increased volume of rums being barreled for ageing and for future use in DDL’s branded products.

In the courts

Lusignan man accused of killing daughter, 11, in ‘sacrifice’ - A 33-year-old construction worker, who police say “sacrificed” his 11-year-old daughter in order to get rich, was remanded to prison on Friday on a murder charge.

Ganesh Ramdain appeared before Magistrate Marissa Mittelholzer at the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court and was not required to plead to the charge that between March 25 and 27, at Lusignan, East Coast Demerara, he murdered Varshane Ramdain.

According to the police, on March 25, around 10 am, Varshane was alone in her bedroom, which is located at the first floor of their home while her mother was on the ground floor. Ganesh allegedly went into his daughter’s room, where he choked her and tied her up to the rafter of the roof. After committing the crime, he went downstairs, raised an alarm before going back into the bedroom to cut her down. Varshane succumbed in hospital two days later. Police revealed that Ganesh confessed to the murder in a recorded video interview in which he said that he believed that if he sacrificed her, he would get wealthy. He was ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation and the matter was adjourned until May 11, 2020.

Bisram rearrested after magistrate discharges murder case against him - Marcus Brian Bisram was last week freed of the murder charge laid against him over the killing of carpenter Faiyaz Narinedatt but his freedom was short-lived as he was re-arrested by police based on a directive from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who believes there is sufficient evidence for him to stand trial in the High Court. Bisram walked out of the Whim Magistrate’s Court a free man after Magistrate Renita Singh upheld a no-case submission presented by his attorneys at the end of the preliminary inquiry into the murder charge against him. The charge stated that between 31 October, 2016 and 1 November, 2016, at Number 70 Village, Corentyne, he counselled, pro-cured and commanded Harri Paul Parsram, Radesh Motie, Niran Yacoob, Diodath Datt and Orlando Dickie to murder Narinedatt. Magistrate Singh ruled yesterday that a prima facie case was not made out against Bisram, after which she discharged him and he left the court. However, in less than three hours Bisram was re-arrested at Number 78 Village, Corentyne, while in the process of purchasing alcoholic beverages for a celebration he was expected to host last evening at his house at Number 70 Village, Corentyne. The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in a statement to the press noted, that “there was sufficient evidence for the Magistrate Ms. Renita Singh to have committed Bisram”.