Cabinet met late this afternoon at the prime minister’s office here in Belize City, a departure from its usual meeting place at the Sir Edney Cain Building in Belmopan. High on the agenda was government’s strategy going forward in respect of the postponed referendum, ahead of a scheduled House meeting this Friday. But what’s the […]
The Prime Minister also told News Five that he had received correspondence from Opposition Leader John Briceño. Briceño is requesting that the PM calls off a meeting of the House of Representatives scheduled for this Friday. The PM scoffed at the suggestion that government should now meet with the opposition to discuss a delay, since […]
With all the new developments in the referendum debacle and a legal prescription to fix what’s wrong with the existing act, a new date for Belizeans to go to the polls remains to be set. Prime Minister Barrow, this evening, flatly dismissed the notion that the Constitution of Belize be amended in order to hold […]
Opposition Leader John Briceño this evening released a prerecorded video statement responding to the ruling of the Court of Appeal and remarks made by Prime Minister Dean Barrow following that ruling. Briceño did not touch on his recent letter to P.M. Barrow, but rejected statements that the PM attributed to him while defending the judiciary […]
There will be regular classes on Wednesday, April tenth, now that the I.C.J. Referendum has been postponed. This is the latest and official comment from the Ministry of Education. There was confusion this morning as it relates to whether or not classes would be held. This morning an official of the ministry told the media […]
On the heels of two consecutive losses in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, the government is convening a sitting of the House of Representatives this Friday to fix the problem that led to the postponement of Wednesday’s referendum. The government appeared to be caught flat footed by the decision of the courts. […]
Following the decision of the Court of Appeal on Monday, Prime Minister Dean Barrow told the nation that he has no doubt that the I.C.J. referendum will be held no later than six to eight weeks from the originally scheduled date. That matter goes to the House on Friday. During that period, the government will […]
Both the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal were in session today as Belizeans waited anxiously for what is to happen on April tenth. Would the referendum stand? We will have full coverage of this extraordinary day from the ruling of the court to a late evening press conference by the prime minister. The […]
Opposition Leader John Briceño has taken the opportunity, following the decision of the Court of Appeal this evening, to call on Prime Minister Barrow to return to the bipartisan approach in dealing with the I.C.J. referendum. While he did not gloat in the consecutive legal victory against government, Briceño pointed out that the Barrow administration […]
Immediately after the ruling of the Court of Appeal upholding the injunction, the Prime Minister held a lengthy press conference at the Laing Building. P.M. Dean Barrow accepted that the referendum would not proceed on Wednesday. Prime Minister Dean Barrow “We will not be having a referendum on Wednesday April the tenth. I am […]
So what the government’s next move? More litigation….According to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, the government will be looking at the Caribbean Court of Justice for another appeal, though that appeal is not likely to be launched ahead of April tenth. Though the Court of Appeal upheld the injunction, the P.M. also said that he believed […]
Many observers have been asking why the Barrow Administration hasn’t taken the matter to the House of Representatives to fix what he described as the possible mischief that the Chief Justice flagged when coming to his decision to issue the injunction. Here is how PM Barrow explained it. Prime Minister Dean Barrow “Well the […]
For context of the day’s proceedings, when the session opened this morning, submissions were made by the government side as to why the appeals court should hear the matter expeditiously based on the rules of procedure. Those submissions took all morning and when the court adjourned at midday, Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte provided an update […]
Was Chief Elections Officer Josephine Tamai in contempt of court last Wednesday when she sent out a memo following the CJ’s decision to grant an interim injunction? Senior Counsel Eamon Courtenay put forward in his submissions this afternoon that Tamai’s actions by instructing members of staff to proceed with referendum preparations, despite the Supreme Court […]
On Monday, the Government of Belize and the Opposition Party will go to legal war at both the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal is scheduled to hear government’s application to have the Supreme Court injunction lifted. If the Court of Appeal rules in favour of G.O.B., this will allow the […]
The Opposition Party has until Saturday evening to file skeletal arguments after which the hearing will be held on Monday. For the government, it is a race against time and Peyrefitte is accusing the P.U.P. of purposely delaying the legal proceedings. Michael Peyrefitte, Attorney General “The People’s United Party does not want this matter […]
As you heard, attorneys for P.U.P. parliamentarians and the Government went before the Court of Appeal this afternoon for case management ahead of arguments on Monday. To put things in perspective, News Five’s Isani Cayetano looks back at the interim injunction granted on Wednesday by the Chief Justice which has triggered another round of legal […]
So what is happening at City Hall? P.U.P. Belize City Councillor Ryan Elijio caused quite a stir on Thursday night after a post on his personal Facebook profile alluded to him resigning from the council. Posted on Elijio’s Facebook was “I work too hard for my name and I will never need it up for […]
The remains of an elderly man were found today near the Los Lagos community, Ladyville. It has been determined so far that the bones are that of an elderly man, but there are still many unanswered questions and his identity has not been confirmed. Not far away, police also found clothing items and a denture. […]
Barranco in is one of the smallest villages in the country. The quiet community is located in a remote area of southern Belize and overtime, it has generally kept away from the news. The iconic Andy Palacio is a son of the village, he died years ago and generally, the population has been shrinking so […]
Belize is among five countries that have been named as “drug transit” countries by the U.S. government in the latest International Narcotics Control Strategy Report. The other four countries are: the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica. The report states that Belize was also named a transit country for illicit drugs destined for the […]
There is still a number of questions as to what will happen next week Wednesday, on April tenth, following the granting of an interim injunction. Twenty-four hours after the ruling, government moved to file an appeal before the Court of Appeal, which seeks to overturn the Chief Justice’s decision to postpone the I.C.J. referendum. Those […]
There are two hearings at play. One is before the Chief Justice and the other is before the Court of Appeal where as we said, the government is attempting to reverse the CJ’s decision. So will the injunction be lifted in time for April tenth? It’s the most urgent question that’s on the minds of […]
Aside from filing an injunction forthwith, government is also seeking a variation of the Chief Justice’s decision which would essentially allow for the referendum to be held on April tenth and the results kept confidential until the substantive matter has been decided upon. Not only has that notion been described as strange, it also poses […]
All things considered, government is already looking at the worst case scenario which simply means that the referendum may very well be held in June, after the issue has been taken to the House of Representatives for a vote. In any event, AG Peyrefitte says that the U.D.P. will have the majority vote when that […]
