The figure for unemployment was also released by the S.I.B. But first, the largest employer is the private sector, no surprise here; it employs fifty-eight percent of the work force while twelve percent work for the government and twenty-seven percent are self employed. The S.I.B. also reports that in comparison to 2012, unemployment is fourteen […]
There is growing outrage among the ranks of the police force on the conviction of Gino Peck, a long serving officer of the force. But while his colleagues are standing behind the officer, is that the sentiment of the public at large? This afternoon, News Five was on the streets to canvas opinion on this […]
Late this evening, Cabinet issued a release in response to an ongoing check scandal involving U.D.P. Minister of State Edmond Castro and the Belize Airports Authority. Castro came under fire after checks surfaced drawn on the operating account of the BAA which indicated that he had gotten money from that body for personal and political […]
Also included in the lengthy Cabinet release is word that disgraced former Minister of State Elvin Penner will be stripped of his government vehicle. He has had it, and enjoyed that and all other financial perks of his political position, since September when the Won Hong Kim passport scandal broke. He will now be required […]
Councilor Eric Chang has been in the hot seat in respect of the immigration scandal. Chang allegedly had a role in the passport issued to Won Hong Kim, the South Korean fugitive. Chang was in Taipei when the scandal broke. Kim, who was in a jail at the same time in Taipei, had obtained Belizean […]
Cabinet has issued its official proclamation on the Castro check situation, basically exonerating the U.D.P. Minister of State from all-wrongdoing, but asking the BAA Board to resign. But today, Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley was not as forgiving. Bradley says that the issuing of checks by the BAA to Minister of State Edmond Castro was […]
The Golden Citizens Electricity Bill Pay Award – it’s an initiative put in place by B.E.L. in 2011 to benefit golden citizens all over the country. It all started with one act of kindness in the Customer Service section of the company, and from that came a program which really makes a big difference. The […]
Minister of State in the Ministry of Transport, Edmond Castro, has been in the hot seat for some time. But this time, he came under fire after Belize Airports Authority cheques surfaced, along with the allegations that the statutory body had been playing a second role as the Minister’s cash cow. At the House meeting […]
Last Friday, we reported that a parcel of land used as a park in the Orange Walk East Constituency had ended up in the hands of the politically connected Aragon family. The issue had been brewing for some time, but with one member of the Aragon clan, Elodio Aragon Junior, running in a convention for […]
The biggest setback for the industry, according to Ortega, is still the deplorable condition of the sugar roads in a number of areas. So farmers are taking matters into their own hands and are filling huge craters to make roads accessible to the cane fields. Ortega is also asking the government to restart the works […]
Last week Wednesday, Norwegian Cruise Lines executives were part of a consultation process in Independence, seeking input on the Environmental Impact Assessment for their proposed cruise tourism port on Harvest Caye. Residents lashed out at the EIA, claiming that it was full of errors and premises based on old and inaccurate data. The mood was […]
Earlier today when we spoke to Elodio Aragon Junior, the U.D.P. political aspirant for Orange Walk East, we also questioned him about the reports that he had been using government resources to run his campaign. Aragon was deputy commissioner of the Police Department and in line for the top job when he stepped down to […]
The Belize Fishermen Cooperative Association (B.F.C.A.) on Friday was presented with a Sony laptop computer and accessories as well as significant fisheries publications. The donation is part of the Implementing the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy which fosters the positioning and engaging of fisherfolk organizations. It also aims to improve the quality of life of […]
This morning teachers from the Cayo District Branch of the Belize National Teachers Union gathered at the Macal Park in San Ignacio. This is the fourth of ten peaceful protests planned by the union as it seeks to be heard on the salary adjustment and other pressing issues. Today’s gathering is the first since the […]
Three passport officers are still on suspension for their alleged involvement in the Won Hong Kim passport scandal. There has been no public disclosure of evidence against them, or indeed of their particular roles, but they were sent on suspension less than two weeks after the scandal broke. Those public officers, Sharon Neal, Erwin Robinson […]
Minister Hulse also commented on the report compiled by the Department of Immigration on the nationality section. News Five broke the story of the Won Hong Kim report, which was finished more than three months ago on October fourth, 2013. That document makes very specific reference to how the system was compromised, offers a direct […]
Minister of State Edmond Castro and the Belize Airports Authority—a politician and his personal piggy bank… The story of cheques drawn on the BAA’s account and made out to Castro, his friends and family and to pay his personal and political debts is a sordid one. The story broke wide open on News Five on […]
Did Edmond Castro cross the line when he used his authority as Minister in charge of the Belize Airports Authority to get his hands on public monies? Prime Minister Dean Barrow says he didn’t, at least not legally. But legalese aside, corruption is corruption, and the court of public perception has already judged Castro fit […]
And for more comment, News Five also went to the man who, at least before he walked the hallowed halls of government, was an anti-corruption champion and a relentless warrior against wrongdoing. Minister Godwin Hulse didn’t deign to give his opinion on the Castro check controversy, but he did spend some time trying to explain […]
How did a public space end up in private hands in Orange Walk? The story starts back in the seventies when the land located in the downtown area of Orange Walk was bequeathed to the government with the explicit intention that it be used for a public facility. Fast track to 2011, the lease on […]
The Supreme Court closed today for hearings as legal practitioners headed over to the Radisson Hotel for a one day conference. The Bar Association is an active voice in support of changes to the law and justice system in Belize, but today the Bar was engaged in educating its members and legal practitioners on the […]
Earlier when we spoke to businessman Landy Burns, he was aggrieved that a plot of land that was being developed for sporting activities has now ended up in the hands of Adin Aragon. Burns is peeved about one more issue and that’s taxes. Last year, Burns told the media that he was being threatened by […]
The Norwegian Cruise Line proposed port on Harvest Caye has been somewhat on the backburner lately, but for tourism stakeholders and residents in the south, it is certainly up front and personal. The topic resurrected with a vengeance on Wednesday night, when NCL executives stopped off in Independence for a community consultation facilitated by the […]
The discussion was tense on Wednesday because the proposed NCL tourism port is such a big deal for all involved. But perhaps the situation has been exacerbated by a perception that the project is already a done deal…that the consultations are just for show and the project has already been given a green light by […]
On Wednesday, the House meeting lasted more than five hours, and a lot came out of it. We brought you the meat of the day on Wednesday, but tonight we have the gravy. Swimming in that gravy is the statutory body turned personal piggy bank, which is now the subject of intense scrutiny. At the […]
