… Consumers Bill to enhance business sectorThe Consumers Affairs Bill which was recently passed in the National Assembly will enhance the way goods and services are sold and bought. It is set to also guide businesses to inculcate standards in their business practices, and also aid jewelers to standardize the sector, according to Minister of Tourism and Commerce Manniram Prashad.Reently, gold jewelry manufactures in collaboration with the Gold Board, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) and Commerce Minister Manniram Prashad met recently following several complaints of poor quality jewellery being sold by some businesses.Also at that meeting were Acting Executive Director of the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS), Ms. Evadnie Enniss;? Manager of Geological Services of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, Kampta Persaud; and General Manager of the Guyana Gold Board, Antram Balram; as well as several reputable jewelers.The absence of many of the jewelers was noted at the event.According to GNBS technical operator, Abidin Mohamed, the specification for gold article are standardized under (GYS: 50:2010) and (CRS: 17:2010) which are all regional standards.He explained that independent testings are done by the GNBS and through a quality control system, while audits are done through the jewelers establishment randomly with surveillance audits within the year of the stipulated license to evaluate if there is compliance with the standards.Mohamed noted that there would be higher customer satisfaction when the standards mark is on the jewel and confidence in their purchase leading to reduced complaints.Noting that the jewel products will be accepted regionally,Jerseys NFL China, Mohamed said the company can gain a marketing edge over its competitors.Dominic Gaskin of Topaz Jewelery said that the scheme was to be a part of a larger developmental process and because there was a lack of a strategic plan to develop the jewel industry. However, the certification scheme is now being used to certify retailers.He added that retailers would purchase from several other jewelers who might not be certified and as such reduced quality would slip through the system.“Then the scheme has no value.” Gaskin acknowledged that he would support a separate scheme for retailers.Acting Executive Director of the GNBS,Cheap Jerseys China, Evadnie Enniss,Wholesale Jerseys USA, however denied that the scheme caters for retailers that it only caters for manufacturers while each manufacture should purchase to know of the standards regulations.According to Minster Prashad the jewelers should band together and form their own standard in a group and collaborate with the GNBS.He urged jewelers to embrace the Product Certification Scheme by the GNBS and confirm to the National Standards Mark to ensure the quality of the gold jewellery manufactured and sold.The Minister expressed his concerns regarding unscrupulous dealers selling substandard jewellery to customers and stated the need to weed out such practices through standardization in products.Minister Prashad assured that his Ministry remains committed to protecting the consuming public from unscrupulous dealers and will be looking into the matter seriously.The Tourism Minister noted that as Guyana is becoming a known tourist destination,Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping, poor quality gold jewellery sold on the local market could have a negative impact on the manufacturers of gold jewellery and on the image of our destination.Minister Prashad said that it is in the interest of the businesses to make sure they have quality products, noting that only two businesses at present,Cheap NFL Jerseys, have the National Standards Mark.The Consumers Affairs Bill 2011 will equip his Ministry to better serve and protect the rights of consumers,Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping, he added.

A case of total lack of knowledge of the judicial system, an ignorance of what a voir dire is, and poor editing and management by Kaieteur News led to a murder trial being aborted yesterday.The fallout is that Editor-in-Chief Adam Harris,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, and the court reporter must appear before Justice Brassington Reynolds,NFL Jerseys Wholesale, today, to explain why they should not be cited for contempt.The case involved murder accused Andrew Gomes, who allegedly killed his father on November 27, 2008, and was objecting to his caution statement by way of a voir dire. This is a trial conducted in the absence of the jury.The killing occurred at Waikabra, Soesdyke/Linden Highway.The newspaper report not only exposed the missing jury to the comments emanating from the voir dire but it also contained statements that were not even contained in the deposition before the court.Justice Brassington Reynolds,Cheap MLB Jerseys China, who was hearing the matter, had no option but to abort the trial. Both the defence and the prosecution approached him with copies of Kaieteur News and their individual objections.But the report was more than an assault on the prosecution and the defence,Cheap NFL Jerseys, said one lawyer. The accused, Gomes had waited almost five years for his day in court. The newspaper report has consigned him to prison for at least another two years. His case cannot be recalled during these Assizes.Further,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, the jury which was empanelled,Cheap Jerseys Online, has been reduced to being engaged in an exercise in time-wasting.Today’s hearing begins at 9:30 hours.