188 naturalizations on the Capital

There is breaking news in Corozal and that is that the lifeless body of a man was found in a vehicle. We’ll have more of that story later in this newscast. But first, in January, over a thousand immigrants mostly from Central American countries became new citizens of Belize. Most of them could not recite the oath because they did not speak English and there are claims that due diligence was not followed. But there was surely an indecent haste to get the new Belizeans on the voters list for the March seventh elections. Well, today another large group who did not make it in January rush, became new citizens in Belmopan. While they technically cannot get on the list for the March municipal and general elections, they can surely register for any other election and have now acquired full rights and privileges as any other Belizean. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports from Belmopan.

Isani Cayetano, Reporting

A hundred and eighty-eight men and women, extending the gamut of color, creed and race, some from as far away as Nigeria and Ukraine, were this afternoon sworn in as Belizeans.

Ruth Meighan

Carlos Perdomo, Minister of Immigration

“Welcome to the real Belize so that you will become Belizean citizens.”

The process is the continuation of mass nationalizations under the U.D.P. government which began in early January.

Ruth Meighan, Director of Immigration

“Your choice of Belize as your home and the acquisition of Belizean citizenship is a realization of a dream and may even mark the beginning of a new life for many of you here today.  This ceremony is therefore to formalize that rite of passage that determines your specific time of entry into the Belizean family.”

Alberto August

The expedition of granting Belizean citizenships was initially a tool used to gain political advantage by padding the voters list.  While the number of candidates and the frequency of installations have waned over the past few weeks today’s addition did not qualify to vote in the upcoming elections.

Alberto August, Chairman, Elections and Boundaries Commission

“Whoever is nationalized right now has no bearings [on the March 7^th elections], those persons cannot go on the national voters list.  There was a cutoff date of the twentieth of January and any person who registers after that date will not be able to vote in the upcoming elections.”

According to Alberto August, Chairman of the Elections and Boundaries Commission, politicians, upon receipt of the official voters list for each constituency, cannot tamper with the final tally.

Alberto August

“Every politician who knows what they are doing will realize that when it comes to the last supplementary list, if they have five thousand, seven hundred and forty-one persons on that date, then there is no way that they will have five thousand, seven hundred and forty-two for the list that they get for the elections.  So the politicians they are aware of this.  There is no way that they can put anybody on that list right now.  Those who are getting their nationality right now cannot go on that list because politicians by and large across this country know what they are doing.”

Despite their ineligibility Minister of Immigration, Carlos Perdomo, briefly commented on the accomplishments of the democratic process.

Carlos Perdomo

“We have always have been successful in our elections.  They’ve always been peaceful, knock on wood.  They’ve always been fair and again we go to the polls again.”

Reporting for News Five, I am Isani Cayetano.

Various constituencies have filed objections in Court over hundreds of persons on the provisional voters list. These objections are expected to be heard before nomination day next week.