On Wednesday, when asked to comment on Espat’s situation, Pickstock Area Representative Wilfred ‘Sedi’ Elrington proceeded to upbraid his colleague. He went on to say that it is a shame that the People’s United Party, instead of reprimanding Espat for his behavior in the House, is actually united in defense of such action. Today, Espat […]
The appointment of Nestor Vasquez to the Integrity Commission remains a hot button issue for the People’s United Party. Opposition Senator Eamon Courtenay has raised serious concerns about Vasquez’s selection and is critical of his role as the government appointed accountant on the newly formed working group. It was disclosed, following a meeting of the […]
An operation conducted by officers attached to the Forest Department has yielded a significant haul of illegally harvested rosewood. On Wednesday, a site inspection at a woodwork factory in Benque Viejo Town led to the discovery of thirty thousand board feet of flitches. The pieces of lumber did not bear any official markings or documentations […]
The Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association today stepped forward to tell its side of the Fairtrade suspension debacle. The B.S.C.F.A. was suspended for the third time in eight years after auditors found that former San Estevan cane farmer Eloy Escalante sold his quota or production estimate to the son of a Government Minister, Edmond Castro, […]
While the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers’ Association has made it clear that it wants no further part of Escalante, a combative Edmond Castro is a different story. He has threatened to sue if the B.S.C.F.A. continues to blame him for their suspension and accused them of mismanagement of the “ghost farmer” situation. But the Association […]
Christmas parties for needy children are popping up at this time of the year. The annual party of the Salvation Army took place at the Holy Redeemer Parish Hall in Belize City where there was barely standing room. It is one of the biggest parties so far this season by one of the most giving […]
The unending spate of crime and violence which continues to grip the streets of the Old Capital has given rise to a social movement where friends and families of countless victims are demanding a ceasefire. They are doing so by taking to those very streets en masse. We’ve seen a galvanization of Belizeans in the […]
The countdown to Christmas has begun. We know how much splurging takes place around this your time of year – and we’re not talking about splurging on presents – but on all the rich foods and drinks of the season. So before you pour your glass of rumpopo or cut a slice of that black […]
Prime Minister Dean Barrow did not make it back to Belize from New York for health reasons, following meetings with bondholders. A release today says the PM is receiving medical treatment for gastroenteritis. PM Barrow was experiencing symptoms seemingly consistent with viral gastroenteritis prior to his departure to New York. The release states “the symptoms have […]
The Christmas Cheer was introduced by the Barrow Administration to U.D.P. ministers, caretakers and other political officers. Thousands of dollars from the public purse were also disbursed, albeit disproportionately to opposition parliamentarians, as a Christmas Cheer. The monies are said to have been drawn down from the bountiful Petrocaribe Funds. But Petrocaribe has dried up […]
The second session of the Senate Special Select Committee recalled Auditor General Dorothy Bradley, who was joined by direct assistant and Supervisor of Audit Carla Faber to answer further questions in regard to the Immigration Audit Report. The six Senators on the Committee covered extensive ground in the first full session, one of two planned […]
Among the many irregularities found in the Immigration Audit Report’s three volumes is the curious process by which persons who had never set foot on Belizean shores were able to obtain visas, Belizean nationality and passports, in that order, bypassing many of the procedures in place with little more than the sponsorship of local benefactors, […]
The bitter land dispute in Frank’s Eddy Village between businessmen Michael Modiri and Bradley Paumen, over access to Paumen’s Dark Night Tours, is unceasing. Despite their names making headlines on numerous occasions, including a foiled plot to execute Modiri and several others, one individual has remained in the background. Jerome Crawford blew the lid off […]
Crawford claims that he was physically abused by the arresting officers, a matter which is presently before the court. He also says that in visiting the Belmopan police station on Tuesday, he caught wind of a plan involving several officers to blackmail employees of Michael Modiri. Jerome Crawford, Employee of Michael Modiri “The day […]
The government is filing a lawsuit against Andre Vega for not reimbursing to government a four-hundred-thousand-dollar compensation that was paid to him in a land scandal surrounding a property near the Haulover Bridge. Vega, who is the son of former DPM and former Lands Minister Gaspar Vega, and Sharon Pitts were both compensated after they […]
The last we spoke with Minister Elrington, he made it clear that communication with his counterpart in Guatemala, Carlos Raul Morales, was non-existent and that things relating to the territorial claim were at a standstill with Guatemala. . Today, we asked him whether there has been any improvement in particular in respect of a proposed […]
An investigation into the cause of a massive fire that decimated the historic Chateau Caribbean Hotel a week and a half ago, has concluded. According to officials at the National Fire Service, the blaze was the result of an explosion triggered by a leaking gas line which led to the kitchen. The blast took down […]
Today, the Multi-Country Sustainable Development Framework was officially launched following the signing of the agreement between the Government of Belize and the United Nations. The five-year program links the national growth and sustainable development strategy of Belize to the new UN agenda to create a better world, lessen poverty and better the rule of law […]
Christmas is a time for giving and in the spirit of goodwill the Belize Bank, threw a huge party for the children of Stella Marris at the Radisson this morning. The much anticipated event brought joy to the children at the sight of Santa Claus bearing gifts. News Five’s Duane Moody joined in the celebration. […]
Turning to a another contentious issue for the Opposition…Lead P.U.P. Senator Eamon Courtenay is making a direct appeal to his opposite number, Godwin Hulse, to step in and remove Nestor Vasquez from the duly constituted Integrity Commission, to which he was appointed last week. Following the Senate’s meeting on November thirtieth where Vasquez was confirmed, […]
In the Senate’s debate over appointing Vasquez to the Integrity Commission, Senator Courtenay had objected to the appointment mostly on the ground that Vasquez’s long-standing service at now-state-owned enterprise Belize Telemedia Limited as well as the Social Security Board and Central Bank, among others, would place him in unavoidable conflicts of interest when it came […]
And our question for tonight is: Do you believe Julius Espat should return to the House on Friday? 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
Is there another land scandal involving disgraced former Minister of Natural Resources Gaspar Vega bubbling below the surface? News Five has caught wind that shadow P.U.P. Minister of Lands Cordel Hyde is following the paper trails of various questionable land transactions between Vega and constituents in the Orange Walk District. We understand that Hyde is […]
Gaspar Vega stepped down as a member of the Barrow cabinet on October seventeenth. His resignation came amid scandals involving his son Andre Vega and attorney Sharon Pitts in separate, dubious land transactions that saw government forking over significant sums of money to them as compensation for land that was held privately near the Haulover […]
There are no hams and turkeys to be given away this year, at least not from your local area representatives. That’s because the annual Christmas Cheer Program, a Yuletide feature where the Barrow administration gifts thousands of Belizean families with poultry, pork and a little spending money, has been suspended. In the past, government has […]
