Dead at ‘Hardcore’
[Trinidad Express] – A 59-YEAR-OLD man is dead after he collapsed while taking part in yesterday’s “Hardcore” event in Santa Cruz, just as he got over the first obstacle.
According to police, as Neal Birbal exited the cold water pond, he fell to the ground but, despite their best efforts, those present were unable to revive him.
Officers said Birbal was taken to Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope, where doctors performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), but they too were unable to save his life.
The annual event comprised about 20 military-style obstacles over a five-mile course and is open to individuals and corporate teams.
Police said Birbal’s death was the only emergency incident that took place during the event, for which participants have been in training for weeks in advance.
Guatemalan mayor lynched by crowd over attack on rival
[BBC] – The mayor of a town in western Guatemala has been lynched by a group of locals who accused him of ordering an attack on his political rival.
Mayor Basilio Juracan died after being beaten and set alight in Concepcion, Solola province, on Sunday.
The residents believed he was behind an earlier attack in which two women were killed and five other people injured.
Guatemala is one of the most violent countries in Latin America and gun crime is rampant.
However, the lynching of an elected official is unusual.
Last month, Mr Juracan defeated Lorenzo Sequec in the mayoral race in Concepcion, 100km (62 miles) west of Guatemala City,
After losing the election, Mr Sequec accused Mr Juracan of mismanagement and demanded an investigation into the town’s finances.
On Sunday morning, Mr Sequec and members of his family were travelling along a local road when they were cut off by another car.
Unidentified gunmen stepped out of the car and opened fire on Mr Sequec’s car.
His 17-year-old daughter and 16-year-old niece were killed and Mr Sequec and four others were injured.
After news of the ambush spread, a group of angry residents searched for Mr Juracan, whom they suspected of ordering the attack.
After setting alight a number of homes belonging to relatives of Mr Juracan, they tracked down the mayor at his house.
They dragged him out, beat him and set him alight. Police arrived too late to save Mr Juracan.
Don’t tarnish my name – Daren Ganga
[Trinidad Express] – FORMER Trinidad and Tobago cricket captain Daren Ganga has tendered his resignation as a board member of the Tourism Development Company Ltd (TDC) with immediate effect.
Ganga made the announcement in a media release issued yesterday evening.
In the release, he also denied allegations made against him by Tourism Minister Shamfa Cudjoe on Saturday that he brought a proposal before the TDC board for the funding of a Caribbean Premier League (CPL) project in the sum of US$70,000.
In fact, Ganga described Cudjoe’s statement as “absolutely false and bereft of any merit”.
Cudjoe, who was speaking during the 2015-2016 budget debate, alleged that after the Ministry of Sport refused to finance the US$70,000, Ganga took the proposal himself before the TDC board.
Ganga, in distancing himself from the allegation, explained that, after the former government purchased the rights to host the CPL semi-finals and finals earlier this year, the TDC was mandated to act as a coordinating company on behalf of the State.
Based on this, the TDC board then moved to set up a local organising committee (LOC) to deal with all the stakeholders of the event and that he was one of the three TDC board members who sat on the committee.
More Jamaican fruits for US market
[Jamaica Observer]– More Jamaican agricultural products could soon be available on the shelves of major supermarkets and grocery stores in the United States (US).
In making the disclosure, US Ambassador to Jamaica, Luis Moreno said the process to facilitate this move has started, and should become a reality soon.
“Our team is working diligently to help Jamaican exporters get their agricultural products to the US to be on grocery shelves in the US,” he stated.
The ambassador was addressing the opening ceremony for the 16th staging of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Expo at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James last Friday.
Moreno also called on the Jamaican authorities to play their role in ensuring that if there are obstacles which could hinder that process, they should be removed.
“The Jamaican government has to carry part of the ball too. Through a partnership between the Jamaican Government and the US Department of Agriculture, Jamaica has pre-clearance to export 52 products to the United States and the Jamaican Government is working on adding mangoes,” he added.
The US Ambassador pointed out that despite his Government putting in measures to aid the process of exporting mangoes to the United States, those opportunities are still untapped.
“You are not exporting mangoes to the United States; you are not exporting mangoes to some place which desperately wants mangoes. We have laid out everything that you have to do to be able to do that, so it’s up to the Jamaican government and the exporters to get pass those three little things that the US Department of Agriculture is asking for and the market is all yours,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Moreno said over the last two decades, companies from America have invested billions of dollars into the local economy to establish and or expand their operations.
He pointed out that sectors such as the Business Processing Outsourcing, tourism and energy have benefitted from US investments.
He added that another company-Paradise Express Ferry plans to invest US$30-million in a maritime shuttle service between Ocho Rios, St Ann, Montego Bay, St James and Negril in Hanover/Westmoreland.
