Back to the P.U.P. Press Conference. The Opposition, as well as other social partners, amid the ongoing scandal, has been calling for an inquiry into the issue of impropriety at the Immigration Department. But while the business community and other groups have asked for an open probe into the matter, the moral authority of the […]
The situation remains very fluid as to any resignation by Elvin Penner. A few minutes ago, News Five spoke to Penner by phone. Penner said the following… first, he clarified that he has not resigned and does not intend to do so until he has conferred with his people. He also told News Five that […]
The United Democratic Party is under sustained and heavy fire. One of their own has been implicated in massive corruption in the Immigration Department and public outcry has been unceasing. While the PM will never admit it, he expended tremendous political capital circling the wagons around Elvin Penner. With that said, there is little for […]
One man, however, who has a bundle of documents which were purportedly assigned for destruction, is attorney Arthur Saldivar. The documents include dozens of completed application forms, as well as nationality certificates and Saldivar was scheduled to call a press conference on Wednesday to unveil more evidence of wrongdoing at the Immigration and Nationality Department. […]
Former Minister of State Elvin Penner is not the subject of any investigation, administrative or criminal. That was confirmed today by Commissioner of Police Allen Whylie. It’s a stunning revelation. It was announced that the Police entered the picture on Tuesday at four thirty. Since then the media has been trying to find out if […]
The Police are not looking at Penner. What then will they investigate? Perhaps, they will investigate the persistent reports that there is a parallel passport scheme which bypasses the protocol and procedures at the Ministry of Immigration. At the press conference on Thursday, Minister of Immigration Godwin Hulse admitted openly that he knows that there […]
And then there is the damning revelation of a quota system being operated by U.D.P. ministers. The Prime Minister admits to getting reports of that large scale nationality hustle, and claims that he has at every opportunity begged his ministers to “for god’s sake stop.” Here at News Five, we have consistently received credible information […]
On Thursday’s newscast, we showed you the highlights from a press conference which lasted nearly two and a half hours. The head-table was intent on looking to the future, while the media was just as intent on the here and now – specifically the ongoing immigration scandal and the involvement of former Minister of State […]
The nationality certificate obtained by Wonhong Kim, the South Korean fugitive who got Belizean nationality and passport states that Kim resides in Belmopan. There is no house number provided, but Kim’s address on the nationality certificate is simply stated as Piccini Site. Now, it is a crime to knowingly provide inaccurate information for official persons, […]
The two hour and a half press conference offered on Thursday by the Prime Minister and the Minister of Immigration was informative; it brought out information long in circulation that the hanky panky at the immigration department also likely includes a hustle. And while there are far more questions to be answered, the opposition believes […]
Since the last email Penner sent to the media in late September, he has remained mum and away from the watchful eyes of the public. The opposition has called for his resignation or recall, and amid all that there are reports that Penner may be talking to the People’s United Party even though crossing the […]
The P.U.P. Deputy Leader, Julius Espat is also the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. The opposition has walked away from the scheduled hearings because a proposal to change its composition was flatly turned down by the government. Meetings of the PAC are in progress, but the committee is only now made up of government […]
Tonight there is much of interest coming out of a government press conference which lasted two and a half hours at the Best Western Biltmore Plaza. The first half hour was spent outlining new measures in the nationality and passport departments – closing the gate after the horses are out, so to speak and following […]
The question was raised if the Prime Minister had the authority to allow Penner to sign nationality certificates and passports. That’s a matter of interpretation, but the PM did confirm that there is no law which confers Ministerial discretion on any Minister of State. So it is not known if whatever documents Penner signed off […]
Another burning question was the extent of Penner’s role in the passport scandal. Evidence suggests that he was right in the middle of it. Indeed, the PM was sufficiently convinced of his complicity to sack him immediately. But how thin is the line between wrong and criminal? The Prime Minister had previously suggested that Penner […]
Whatever the result of the criminal investigation, the PM is convinced that Penner, in the PM’s own words, was ‘damn’ wrong. So wrong in fact that he will never be allowed back into Cabinet to harm the U.D.P. So said the leader of the nation! But while the U.D.P. is shielded from Penner’s wrongness, the […]
And to nudge the people along to giving Elvin Penner that second chance, the U.D.P. has dispatched its general to the recall battleground in Cayo Northeast. Senior ministers Gaspar Vega, Anthony ‘Boots’ Martinez and Michael Finnegan have all been sent to that western constituency to help persuade voters that a recall is not the answer. […]
To recall or not to recall – much was said today but the truth is that all the talk may be nothing more than rhetoric. That’s because Penner also has the option to walk – with or without a little financial incentive. Prime Minister Barrow says that he’s heard the rumours, and if that’s the […]
Rumours about Penner’s wandering are not the only ones the Prime Minister has heard. There is a much more serious report to consider – that of institutionalized hustling by ministers. For some time now the grapevine has been buzzing with news that select Ministers operate on a quota basis where visas are concerned. For example […]
We’ve covered the visa scam in which it is reported that government ministers are using a quota system, which the prime minister says could cause the fall of his government. But in the passport scandal, three public officers have been sent home; the suspension of the most senior member has been extended to five months […]
An independent investigation is currently underway by the Office of the Auditor General on the Southern Regional Hospital. It comes on the heels of information leaked to the Ministry of Health that there was hanky-panky occurring within the regional hospital. This, according to C.E.O. in the Ministry, Peter Allen, prompted an investigation since July. It […]
The final report from the Pan American Health Organization on the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital is now available. The report was carried out by the Pan American Health Organization following the death of thirteen newborns in the first twenty days of May. Seven of those babies died when they were injected with the bacteria, enterobacter […]
The government currently invests over one hundred and three million dollars for health care. It is managed by the Ministry of Health and invested in public hospitals and clinics across the country. Today at the Radisson Fort George, various stakeholders in the industry converged to discuss the Belize National Health Accounts and the Strategic Plan […]
Tonight there are very interesting developments to report in the passport scandal which shows absolutely no signs of going away. First, this morning a report went viral that a warrant was issued to search a house – but it wasn’t the home of the man who signed all those documents which are at the center […]
A press conference will be held on Thursday by the Ministry of Immigration. But it seems that Arthur Saldivar has single-handedly done what sustained public outcry could not. This morning, Minister Hulse, via phone, revealed on Krem TV that the Police were called in at four-thirty Tuesday evening. But while the Police are now allegedly […]
