Govt breaks nine-year silence on National Awards

May 31, 2011 News

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After almost a decade, Government has once again restarted the National Awards with Prime Minister, Sam Hinds being awarded the Order of Excellence, and heading the list of 133 persons and organizations named.
The Prime Minister’s wife, Yvonne Hinds, will also be awarded; she receives the Medal of Service for her work in the Guyana Relief Council, making it the first time that a husband and wife are the recipients of simultaneous National Awards.
The advertisement announcing the National Awards as well as the subsequent press statement from the Government Information Agency (GINA) were not placed or sent to Kaieteur News over the weekend, despite this being done for the other daily newspapers.
Kwame McCoy said that there was an embargo.
Last week, during the 45th Independence Anniversary observances at National Park, it was that announced National Awards would be placed in the weekend’s editions of the dailies.
The President of Guyana is the Chancellor of the Orders of Guyana and custodian of the insignia, ribbons and records of the Orders. He is charged with the administration of the Orders and can make rules governing the order of precedence of Honours in Guyana.
An Advisory Council submits to the President a list of persons whom the Council recommends for appointment to the Orders of Guyana. The Advisory Council is composed of the Chancellor of the Supreme Court of Judicature (Chairman of the Council).
The current Chancellor, Justice Carl Singh, will be receiving the second highest honour in the land, the Order of Roraima when the National Awards and Investiture Ceremony are held, at a time to be announced.
Attorney General, Charles Ramson, along with Justice Carl Singh, are to be conferred the Order of Roraima.
The Order of Roraima may be awarded to any citizen of Guyana who has rendered outstanding service to Guyana.

Cacique’s Crown
of Honour
Thirteen persons, including Chief Justice Ian Chang and the late Education Minister, Dr. Desrey Fox, who died last year in a car accident, are to be invested with the Cacique’s Crown of Honour.
Chang was a former State Prosecutor while Fox a avid historian. Her award will be a posthumous one.
This award is for citizens of Guyana who have either rendered service of an exceptionally high quality beyond the normal call of duty in the public service, social and voluntary services, industry or trade unions, or in any other area of public service, or achieved excellence of national or international standing and recognition in the arts, professions, sciences or sport or in any other area of activity.
Bank of Guyana’s Governor, Lawrence Williams, Commissioner of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), Khurshid Sattaur, and former PNC’s Minister of Education, Malcolm Parris, are also on that list.
So too are Head of the Bureau of Statistics, Lennox Benjamin; Donna Marie Yearwood and Clyde Roopchand of the Ministry of Finance;
Professors Eon Harris and Clement Sankat, artist Philip Moore; attorney-at-law Miles Fitzpatrick and former Local Government Minister, Clinton Collymore.
Moore created the 1763 Monument.
Golden Arrowhead of Achievement
Some 21 persons including Essequibo miner, Alfro Alphonso and Bartica’s Chunilall Baboolall and construction giants, Courtney Benn and Brian Tiwari, are to be invested with the Golden Arrowhead of Achievement Award.
Former Caricom Assistant Secretary General, Dr. Edward Greene, and Elizabeth Harper of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are on the list also.
To be conferred this award also are Dr. Cyril Solomon, Karshanjee Arjun, Thakur Danny Doobay, Brentnold Evans, Gerry Gouveia, Deo Persaud, Sean Hopkinson, Edward Vieira, Glen Khan, Aubrey Stephenson, David Dabydeen, Dunstan Barrow, Carvil Duncan, Dr Arlington Chesney and Swami Vidyanand.
Medal of
Service (MS)
Fifty-seven persons are to be conferred with Medal of Service. This award is for citizens who have given service of a special quality deserving of official recognition or has given not less than ten years’ service with exceptional dedication in the public service, local government services, industry or the trade unions or in any other area of service to the community.
Among those named are world-ranked squash champion, Nicolette Fernandes; world-renowned bodybuilding champion, Hugh Ross; veteran army pilot, Mike Charles; cricketer Ramnaresh “Ronnie” Sarwan; sprinter Aliann Pompey; Amerindian leader, Yvonne Pearson; overseas-based philanthropist George Subhraj and former PPP/C Minister, Indra Chandarpal.
Also named are Al Creighton, Michael Parris, Andrew Lewis, Paloma Mohamed, Shirley Edwards, Bishop Juan Edghill, Vibert de Souza, Juliet Persico, Ann Greene, Yvonne Hercules, Richard Verbeke and Keith Crawford.
In the MS awards for groups, Help and Shelter, Food For the Poor Inc, Sisters of Mercy, Guyana Relief Council and Mothers in Black were recognized and will also be receiving their awards. The others in this category are Salvation Army Guyana Division, Phoenix Recovery, the National Library, Guyana Women’s Artist Association, the President’s Youth Award Republic of Guyana, Kashif and Shanghai and the Indian Religious, Cultural and Social Organization of West Demerara.
Army Chief, Commodore Gary Best, was named on the list to receive the Military Service Star (MSS) while nine other soldiers are set to be awarded the Military Service Medal (MSM).
These are Colonel Julian Bruce Lovell, Colonel Mark Phillips, Captain John Flores, Colonel George Lewis, Lieutenant Colonel Francis Abraham, Commander Godfrey George, Lt. Colonels Windee Algernon, Khemraj Persaud and Enoch Gaskin.
Commissioner of Police Henry Greene has been earmarked for the Disciplined Services Star (DSS) while four Assistant Commissioners are to be conferred with the Disciplined Services Medal. These include Leroy Brummel, Seelall Persaud, Gavin Primo and George Vyphius.
Chief Fire Officer Marlon Gentle and Colin Howard, Senior Superintendent of Prisons, are also set to receive the DSM award. The last national awards ceremony was held in 2002.

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