The Roman Catholic Church has broken ranks with the Council of Churches. Reverend Noel Leslie, who represents the Council in the Senate, was one of seven parliamentarians to vote in favor of the General Revenue Supplementary Appropriation bills, as well as the Amendments to the Petrocaribe Loans Act last Wednesday. The yes vote on the […]
According to Father Leslie, he is equally obligated to support the position of his bishop, despite having voted in favor of the majority in the council. Rev. Father Noel Leslie, Senator for the Churches “As far as the Catholic Church is concerned the bishop, he’s not in agreement with the law totally and so […]
But is the ecumenical chapel that is to be constructed at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital the sugared pill for the change of heart? Father Leslie said that the topic came up at a past meeting of the Council of Churches and was seen as a good gesture that serves all denominations equally. Isani […]
There are major changes to the top brass of the police department in the City. First, there is no more Eastern Division. That was revealed today at a press briefing this afternoon hosted by Senior Superintendent Chester Williams flanked by his new deputy, Senior Superintendent Alden Dawson. Williams recently returned to the country after acquiring […]
The murder of two young students in the past week stunned the country. Fifteen year old Tarique Thompson and sixteen year old Ruben Leslie were mercilessly gunned down in separate incidents and Guidelight Productions wants to remind the public of these senseless killings by holding a vigil in their memory on Tuesday night. News Five […]
Following the withdrawal of the case by the Minister of State, Great Belize Productions/Channel Five issued a statement saying that it has been vindicated in this high profile case because while public figures have a right to safeguard their reputations, they should expect to be subject to a greater degree of public scrutiny and criticism. But […]
Maya leaders converged today in Golden Stream, Toledo, in solidarity with the Santa Cruz Thirteen. The gathering is their first since the arrest of Cristina Coc and twelve other Maya leaders on June twenty-third. But there was an added dimension to this morning’s event. The MLA is going back to the Caribbean Court of Justice […]
On Thursday, News Five brought you footage of a protest held in Orange Walk Town involving the La Inmaculada Credit Union. Actually it surrounded the removal of General Manager Yolanda Gomez, who was placed on administrative leave in early May. The protesters claimed that after two months, they had not gotten any explanation for the […]
As you heard earlier in the newscast, the situation in Santa Cruz is still very much on centre stage, and so is the issue of the CCJ consent order – what it actually orders, and what the term communal land really means. At the moment all of that is very much up in the air, […]
The Ministry of Natural Resources and the Belize Waste Management Authority inaugurated the San Pedro Transfer Station. It’s a station that is a part of a solid waste management system that has been rolled out across the country. The project is funded by the IADB, OPEC and G.O.B. Minister of Natural resources Gaspar Vega spoke […]
It’s the summer and that means camps are popping up across the city – camps on sports, education and even the creative arts. Today, however, the Lily White Summer Camp was well underway at the B.T.L. Park on Newtown Barracks. Hosted by Edward Rubio, the eight-week camp started on Tuesday and will run through to […]
For those Belizeans who’ve fallen in love with Fibber’s Fried Chicken on Cemetery Road, there is some good news tonight. The local company which has been serving tasty local chicken for more than ten years is giving you the opportunity to get that special Fibbers taste in your own kitchen. Today News Five got an […]
The arrest on June twenty third, 2015 of Maya Leaders Alliance spokesperson Cristina Coc and twelve other residents of Santa Cruz Village has become an international issue. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the O.A.S. has written to the government seeking information on the arrests on the grounds that the life and personal integrity […]
The La Inmaculada Credit Union, headquartered in Orange Walk, is one of the largest in the country. It has assets around fifty million and about twenty-one thousand members, but it also has a big problem. On May eighth, its long-time General Manager and institution icon Yolanda Gomez was summarily placed on administrative leave by the […]
And inside the Senate on Wednesday, things got testy between Senators Thimbrel and Shoman. The U.D.P. senator said that the “U.D.P. Government” is spending the monies wisely and that the proof is in the pudding. Well, the way the “debate” was going didn’t seem to sit well with Shoman. Here’s how that exchange went. […]
And there is no debate of Petrocaribe without the now famous ‘tacos and beer’ trip to Corozal. Well, in the senate, Senator Godwin Hulse justified the use of Petrocaribe funds for the “free trip”- which, you may know by now, has been publicly condemned by many as irresponsible use of the funds. And it was […]
And whether it sounded like a debate or not, things were a bit calmer when Senator Joy Grant presented. She served up the usual figures and little political jabs here and there, but she told the senate that no matter how much the Petrocaribe is opposed – they, the U.D.P., did their home work. In […]
On Friday, the House meeting was abbreviated when the Opposition walked out of the House in protest, so the first actual debate on Petrocaribe occurred today in the Senate. The session included discussion on supplementary appropriations for 2014/2015 and 2015/2016, as well as the amended Petrocaribe Bill. It was a lengthy exercise with input from […]
Opposition Leader in the Senate Lisa Shoman asked for a division in votes for the approval of the supplementary appropriations for 2014/2015. That led to the bill being passed with seven, for and five, against. Interestingly, Senator Reverend Noel Leslie is on record voting ‘No’ to the Petrocaribe Loan when it first went before the […]
The debate on the amended Petrocaribe Bill started after two this afternoon. Right off the top it was classified by Senator Lisa Shoman as nothing more than a pig wearing lipstick and a carnival costume. We have part of the opening presentations from that long awaited debate on Petrocaribe. Mark Lizarraga, Senator, Business Sector […]
Senator Patrick Andrews was removed from the House at the instructions of the Speaker, Michael Peyrefitte during last Friday’s House meeting. That measure prompted the opposition representatives to walk out of the House and absent themselves from the debate of the important amendment to the Petrocaribe Loans Act. While the public is split on whether […]
Still on Petrocaribe…It is well known that there’s been bad blood between Prime Minister Barrow and the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The latest fall out was last Friday. Following the special sitting of the House of Representatives, the PM, told the media that the private sector organization is, “playing the fool and disregarding […]
The Chamber has called for transparency, accountability, adherence to the rule of law, and good governance and says that while these may be trivial in political calculations, they are important to Belize’s social and economic wellbeing. The letter written to the prime minister, says Vasquez, remains unanswered. Arturo ‘Tux’ Vasquez, President, BCCI “As we […]
The Supreme Court, with support from UNICEF, officially opened Punta Gorda’s first child-friendly Family Court. In release issued, the child-friendly court is hailed as “a leading milestone and part of the strengthening and establishment of a child-friendly justice system in Belize.” The new building is designed for children and includes play rooms as well as […]
Belize has come under intense scrutiny from agencies within the region for failure to meet international standards in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. The Caribbean Financial Action Taskforce is one such organization which serves as an umbrella for a majority of the countries within the basin. In November 2013, Belize was listed […]
