Lord Ashcroft also commented on the possible privatization of the utility companies. In his view, while it will be difficult to get investors to purchase minority shares; the sale of utilities can be an opportunity for a solution to the Super Bond issue. Lord Michael Ashcroft “Would you invest in a company that is […]
It appears the Senate Special Select Committee is convinced that Eric Chang and Patrick Tillett can contribute to their investigation into the circumstances of eight missing visa foils that they sought to have authenticated at the Immigration Department in Belmopan, which turned out to be stolen. Chang, the former Deputy Mayor, has been implicated as […]
David Nanes Schnitzer – his name is back in the news in a big way after his recent re-capture by international authorities and return to Mexico to face fraud charges. He was in Belize and caught with various fraudulent documents, including Belizean nationality and a passport which have since been revoked, according to Minister of Immigration […]
There are provisions in both the Senate and House of Representatives Standing Orders which effectively prohibit premature publication of evidence by those involved in Select Committees. As we have seen, these prohibit discussion of the ongoing public hearings of the Senate Select Special Committee in any public forum even though the hearings are being broadcast […]
Former finance officer in the Department, Teresita Castellanos last week dared to say what no else would, at least publicly. At her second appearance before the Senate Special Select Committee last Wednesday, she disclosed that a culture of corruption and hustling existed at the Department. In this regime, Immigration officers, abetted by their superiors, acted […]
Returning for his second time in the witness chair this afternoon was former officer in charge of the Nationality Section, Gordon Wade. In his previous appearance, he named several Ministers of Government as being frequent visitors to the department for various items from visa to nationality recommendations. But today he spoke of a “Minister’s List,” […]
American fugitive Daniel Rae Morris apparently wound up with a Belizean’s expired passport, although he didn’t get very far with it, as he was detained at the northern border and subsequently expelled from Belize. Camalote resident Floyd Emmanuel Neal told wildly different stories about his passport to police and immigration, but he wound up getting […]
As final vettor, Gordon Wade’s word was almost law when it came to recommendations for nationality. He gave the final word before the Director gave her stamp of approval. But, as in the case of Tizing Huang, a person claiming to have permanent residence, despite having only just arrived in Belize, can slip through the […]
There was uproar this morning outside of Gwen Lizarraga High School where tardy students were locked out and not allowed to enter the compound, essentially missing out on their first classes of the day. When our news crew arrived on the scene, over a dozen students were standing outside on Antelope Street and police officers […]
A three-day workshop concluded in the city today – two days were spent gathering information from regional and international specialists, including scientists and legal experts, on issues that are relevant on how we conserve and sustainably manage marine biological diversities in areas that are beyond our territorial waters. Today was the final day – a […]
Over the weekend, a new board was elected for the Belize Olympic Committee. The national committee holds elections every four years after the Olympic Games. It’s a requirement to be affiliated with the International Olympic Committee which funds various sports programs annually in member countries, including Belize. Belize is allocated one hundred and twenty-five thousand […]
The new board of the committee include: Hilberto Martinez who was reelected as President and Owen Meighan as Vice President. Meanwhile, Arturo Vasquez was voted in as Treasurer with Allan Sharp and Giovanni Alamilla as Secretary and Assistant Secretary, respectively. Also joining the board as members are Julian Murillo, Herman Pastor Junior and Deon Sutherland. […]
The Institute of Creative Arts is asking the public to come and party with them for the seventh edition of the Street Art Festival. The event, which will be held this Saturday in downtown Belize City once again, was created back in 2011 to showcase art and culture, giving artists a marketplace to dialogue one-on-one […]
Brukdown Queen Leela Vernon passed away on Sunday morning at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital in Belize City. The well-known Punta Gorda resident has received accolades locally and internationally and her death has been a blow, particularly to cultural enthusiasts. The tentative date for Vernon’s burial is next Wednesday, March first, but even before her […]
It’s arguably the most visible brand in supermarkets across the country—popular for everything from pepper sauce to luncheon meat and everything in between, including condiments. Today, Grace Kennedy (Belize) Limited officially celebrated its thirty-fifth birthday and it did so by sharing with the media a brief history of its origin in the country, just one […]
Government’s inability to make the twenty-six million dollar Super Bond payment that became due on Monday comes as no surprise to the Opposition. In fact, default on the debt obligation was anticipated, according to P.U.P. Party Leader John Briceño, who says that bold assertions made by Prime Minister Barrow back in 2012, of having fixed […]
Briceño’s premise hinges on the fact that the owners of the bond have put in place stringent conditions that, should government fail to pay the interest, taxpayers will be saddled with additional penalties. All things considered, the state of the economy, when factored into the existing predicament, also paints a rather gloomy picture. Briceño maintains […]
Three weeks ago, the Supreme Court-ordered mediation between the Belize National Teachers Union and the Ministry of Education concluded. Today, the parties returned to Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin’s chambers with an update and we can tell you that it is a major victory for the B.N.T.U. In the aftermath of an eleven-day strike in October, […]
Palacio went on to note that they had the precedents on their side, as well as the goodwill of their membership and the community, and that was more than enough to finally sway the ministry. He credits the success of their fight to staying the course, even as forces gathered against them demanding that they […]
The union says the financial hit to teachers would have been in the millions of dollars if the stand-off continued and the ministry followed through on planned salary deductions. There were times in the middle of the strike and afterward when it looked like the relationship between the B.N.T.U. and the Ministry would be sundered […]
Following today’s announcement that teachers have secured a major win in the high court, we asked P.U.P. Party Leader John Briceño for a brief comment on the outcome of the mediation. He says that the union stayed the course in defense of its membership and that they prevailed, despite the pettiness of the Minister of […]
On Monday night, we aired several parts of an extended interview with Minister of Immigration Godwin Hulse. He was on a working visit in the Spanish Lookout area when we caught up with him at an event. He fielded questions on all the burning issues surrounding the immigration scandal. He got pretty testy with the […]
Teresita Castellanos, one of the witnesses in the Special Select Inquiry into the immigration scandal, testified last Wednesday that the ring of corruption in the Immigration Department started from the top – Ministerial level – right down to the bottom – the clerks and those who are a part of the document processing inside the […]
Coincidentally, the B.N.T.U.’s final appearance in court came moments before the Mason preliminary inquiry. As part of their eight good governance agenda demands issued during the October strike, they asked for the contracting of an international expert to investigate the beheading of Pastor Llewellyn Lucas in July 2016. Back in December, Prime Minister Dean Barrow appeared […]
Quality Poultry Products say that quality is not just in the name – the quality has been internationally certified. Belize’s largest poultry producer has obtained its HACCP certification. This is a guarantee that states that as producers of poultry they have implemented management systems in which poultry safety is addressed through the analysis and control […]
