According to Ortega, the P.M.’s press conference last Thursday was unfairly weighted as it appeared that he was in support of ASR/B.S.I. While P.M. Barrow openly said that he expected the application for an order of mandamus to fall flat, the Supreme Court has set a date for the fourth week in February to hear […]
Ortega further explains the reason why farmers believe that they have been cornered into signing the agreement. Alfredo Ortega, Former Vice-Chairman, B.S.C.F.A. “That has caused a situation among the farmers because they have said, “Well, we’ve listened to our prime minister on which he said that he is not in favor of the farmers […]
And our question for tonight is: Do you think Government should disburse Petrocaribe funds to replace Fair-Trade money disbursed to farmers? Send your comments and responses using your SMART phones to 8686 or post your vote on our e-poll at channel5belize.com. You can also send an email with your comments to questions@channel5belize.com.
Late this evening police in the north confirmed that an anti drug unit operation yielded a huge bust of heroin near the outskirts of the Corozal. The exact quantity of the drug is believed to be forty pounds or nineteen plus kilos which carries a street value of twelve million Belize dollars. It is the […]
Last week on ABC, Belize was named as one of the top destinations to visit in 2015. Well, today the Belize Tourism Board announced that 2014 was an excellent year for the industry. Confirming that the number of visitors had surpassed the projected target of a million visitors, the B.T.B. says that overnight arrivals were […]
But there is some good news delivered on Monday. This coming Friday, January sixteenth, attorneys and judges will meet for their annual Law Conference which is a major event in the Bar’s calendar. The theme is “Reforms, Rights and Remedies.” The conference will be marked by the historic visit of Justice Dennis Byron, the President […]
There is some movement, though little happiness, in the sugar industry tonight which has been in crisis for months now resulting in a delay of the 2014 sugar crop. News Five has confirmed that over the weekend, B.S.C.F.A. directors were tasked with going to their individual branches and taking a vote on whether to sign […]
As Cansino mentioned, there are branches who have decided to disassociate themselves completely from the B.S.C.F.A. Now can they legally do that? Prime Minister Dean Barrow says that they can, but other parties and attorneys have said that they can’t. But legally or illegally, some of them intend to branch off. And even if it […]
And that brings us to the Fairtrade disbursement of four million dollars. Up to Friday, we understood that following warnings from that certifying body, Finance Committee Chairman, Javier Keme, had refused to sign checks. But he did, and today three branches – Guinea Grass, Patchakan and San Estevan have already received their checks. This means […]
As has become apparent, the backs of farmers have been broken by a combination of ASR/B.S.I.’s inflexible stance, and G.O.B.’s deliberate withdrawal from the equation at a critical juncture. In the next couple of days all farmers are likely to have signed on to the agreement with the factory, for better or worse. The P.U.P. […]
According to Fonseca, the signs of today’s sugar cane debacle were foretold when the government refused to allow cane farmers to purchase controlling shares in B.S.I. He claims that a P.U.P. government, from that point, would have sided with the farmers. That was not done, and according to the P.U.P. leader, neither has there been […]
Even as the Opposition has its say, and expresses full solidarity with and support for the cane farmers of Belize, the fact is that at this point cane farmers have run out of time, backative and options. They certainly cannot wait for February twenty-third and a possible Mandamus order. So they will sign…which means that […]
The traditional opening of the Supreme Court was held this morning in Belize City with all the usual pageantry and ceremony that are attached to the event. After a service at Wesley Church, the attorneys and judiciary moved over to the Supreme Court for the speeches that look at the state of affairs in the […]
Cane-farmers, those called the “radicals” by Prime Minister Dean Barrow, this morning got a green light from the Supreme Court to argue for an Order of Mandamus against the Sugar Industry Control Board. That substantive hearing is weeks away on February twenty-third. The intent is to convince the Court that the SICB does have the […]
“Foolishness on top of foolishness…nonsense placed upon stilts.” – Those words were used by the Prime Minister on Thursday to describe the notion by farmers, described by him as radicals…that they could get the Court to move on the Mandamus Order. But the Court has moved, quite decisively. And that brings into scrutiny a very […]
We note again that the impact will be felt on the ground by farmers, not by attorneys in a Courtroom. The reality is that as things stand now, there is absolutely no stability in the industry, and none of the stakeholders know what will happen next. In his press conference on Thursday, Prime Minister Dean […]
Ezequiel Cansino is the overall head of the largest cane-farmer branch in San Estevan, responsible for one hundred and fifty tons of cane. He is in the unenviable position of being Chairman of the BSCFA as well as branch director. And he’s torn between the two. The BSCFA has been instructed by cane-farmers to go […]
So the sugar cane industry is in turmoil and as we said at the beginning, nobody knows what will happen next. If the wish of government and ASR/BSI comes true, individual associations or an alliance of groups will sign the agreement to deliver five hundred thousand tons of sugar cane immediately, and the crop will […]
Turning to other issues, a cargo vessel en route to Belize has been grounded off the coast of the city since the beginning of the week when it began experiencing mechanical difficulties near the English Caye Pilot Station. Rio Para, a ship which flies the flag of Antigua and Barbuda, was on its way from […]
Fresh off a huge win in Monday’s Cayo North by-election, Doctor Omar Figueroa is set to join cabinet. Following a special sitting of Cabinet, the office of the Prime Minister today announced that Figueroa, who is a doctor in Environmental Sciences by profession, is being appointed minister of state in the PM’s office as early […]
There is perhaps an unprecedented level of turmoil in the sugar industry tonight. The issues delaying the start of crop are complicated, but we’ll keep it simple. On Sunday cane-farmers voted to reject the signing of an agreement with ASR/B.S.I. Instead, they instructed the B.S.C.F.A. to seek the intervention of the SICB to force the […]
And certainly the government is not prepared to see American Sugar Refinery close its doors. After clarifying ASR’s position, the PM did the same with his. The Sugar Industry Control Board will not step in at the request of farmers. He’s clear that will not happen. And the PM is also clear, in his mind, […]
Prime Minister says that the reason that government did not move to amend the Act as instructed by the Supreme Court in 2010 is because it wanted to preserve the B.S.C.F.A. But because of the developments in the industry, G.O.B.’s hand has to some extent been forced, and it must contemplate the formation of another, […]
And then Prime Minister Barrow dropped the hammer, expressing its full support for any group which would organize to deliver cane outside of the B.S.C.F.A. That signifies a complete dismissal of the Association by government. And the PM says he doesn’t even have to call a House meeting to amend the Act at this point. […]
There is still no date for the start of the sugar crop and farmers are encouraged to deal directly with the sugar company. While this represents a blow to the B.S.C.F.A., the association is still facing major hurdles. There is a looming threat from Fairtrade on the disbursement of funds and there is the possibility […]
