Like Tony Rath, Consultant Valentino Shal is also undecided. Shal, after reading the legal opinions, believes that Belize has a strong case but there are still risks. On Open Your Eyes, this morning, Shal took aim at Assad Shoman’s recently formed N.G.O. “Citizens for the Defence of Sovereignty’ and the source of its funding. […]
Joining Tony Rath and Valentino Shal on Open Your Eyes was former Marketing Manager Trudy Joseph Swaso who has been very vocal on the topic on social media. Also an undecided voter, Swaso expressed a growing concern on the level of confusion caused by the opposing campaigns. Trudy Joseph Swaso, Marketing Manager “None of […]
The Belize Peace Movement is a strong proponent of the “No to the I.C.J.” taking its campaign as much as possible across the country. So when it was not invited to send observers to provide oversight to the stand-alone April tenth referendum in respect of the polling as well as the counting process, it took […]
Deputy Party Leader Anthony Mahler and parliamentarians Michael Espat, Oscar Requeña, Rodwell Ferguson, Julius Espat and Cordel Hyde are bringing the claim against the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Attorney General of Belize and the Chief Elections Officer. Hyde took aim at Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington, who signed the Special Agreement in […]
The P.U.P.’s Cordel Hyde was also critical of the financing of the education campaign. He says the government has gone hat in hand to the international community, while it spent on unnecessary projects that go nowhere. That money, he argued, could have instead been spent on an independent campaign. According to Hyde, by depending on […]
Attorney Lisa Shoman appeared on behalf of the government today in the case brought by the P.U.P. Shoman has been a party supporter having served as Ambassador, Senator and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Over the past months, she has had both a yes and no position, but more recently, she has been appearing on behalf […]
Government’s wage bill continues to be the single largest budget item as far as its recurrent expenditure, surpassing the cost of goods and services by as much as one hundred and ninety million dollars. Of the total that is being earmarked for interest payment on existing debts, government has set aside one hundred and fifteen […]
The Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition don’t often see eye-to-eye on national issues, but the recent blacklisting of Belize by the European Union has both political leaders looking cross-eyed at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. That’s because the Government of Belize has raised significant concerns about the flawed conclusions drawn […]
While five P.U.P. area representatives were in Supreme Court this morning as claimants in the legal challenge brought about by the opposition, Party Leader John Briceño was in Belmopan for the presentation of the budget. We caught up with him afterwards for an official position on the legal challenge which also sees an application for […]
Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte cried foul a few weeks ago when footage of a well-known U.D.P. operative behind a desk at the Vital Statistics Department surfaced on Vibes Media. The opposition ran an ad depicting questionable practices undertaken at that government office. AG Peyrefitte described it as a misrepresentation of changes that have since been […]
The Maya people in the south have been engaged for twenty years in the process of litigation as it relates to their communal land rights. So when it comes to the taking the territorial dispute between Belize and Guatemala to the International Court of Justice, they have an appreciation of what the process entails and […]
A few weeks ago, we showed you the newly renovated downtown commercial centre which will house City Hall. At the time, Mayor Bernard said the council was facing challenges in indentifying funding for furniture and fittings needed for offices. Today, City Administrator Stephanie Lindo-Garbutt told reporters that while they are getting ready to move in, […]
The City Council today also had a soft launch of the new brand for the council. Those changes to the brand are reflected in the colour schemes use throughout the city council’s buildings, as well as uniforms and the re-naming of the sanitation team. Lindo Garbutt explains what those changes mean for the identity of […]
An alleged bomb threat on Independence Hill recently has prompted strict security measures to be implemented for persons entering the National Assembly Building. The new protocols extend to members of the media who attended today’s house meeting. News Five understands that an employee at the Government Press Office discovered what appeared to be an unknown […]
All month long there have been several events across the country to celebrate women’s contributions to society and history. Today, the Mexican Embassy held an empowerment session at the Mexican Institute in Belize City. The event featured two presenters, including Governor of Central Bank Joy Grant. We stopped by to find out more about women […]
An autopsy on the body of one-month-old baby girl, Rhynaye Alexandra Rowland, was conducted this afternoon. According to the mother, Simbiat Garnett, baby Rhynaye’s cause of death was established to be multiple organ failure. The baby girl died at around three o’clock on Monday evening at her Belize City home. Garnett says that when she […]
Caye Caulker is a top tourism destination for visitors who enjoy the charm and sleepiness of the village. But the island is not powered through the national grid and instead relies on generators for electricity. Today, the Belize Electricity Limited took the media to the island where it showed how it intends to use submarine […]
A recent report is critical of the human rights situation in Belize especially as it relates to the Ministry of National Security. Today, the Vice President of the Human Rights Commission, Kevin Arthurs, broke down the areas of human rights abuses and corruption. Arthurs says these cases can’t be simply swept under the rug. News […]
The Belize International Financial Services Association, BIFSA, has issued a release supporting government’s position in rejecting the country’s inclusion on the EU’s list of Non-cooperative Jurisdictions for Tax Purposes. BIFSA notes that while Belize may not be a large player in the international financial services sector, it met the deadline set by the OECD’s Forum […]
In less than a month, Belizeans will go to the polls to vote in the I.C.J. Referendum. For some, the vote is a straight yes or no, but many are still undecided and others are overwhelmed with the volumes of information and politicizing of the issue. Our correspondent Aurelio Sho was in Peten, Guatemala last […]
We all know it is important to get enough sleep every night. Consistent quality sleep has been proven to improve brain function and productivity, help with regulating your weight, reduce your risk for heart disease and stroke and even depression. All good reasons enough to get to bed earlier tonight and invest in some quality […]
In the aftermath of his accession as Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams held meetings with the department about his plans to revert to eight-hour shifts after more than six years since twelve-hour work days were implemented. Back in January, it was reported that compromise had been reached. At the time, the Police Association confirmed that […]
Another promise was that officers would work a reduced forty-five-hour week if the new schedule was accepted. News Five has been informed that a survey on the shift is being conducted by the Belize Police Association, which has written two letters to the ComPol, but has not received any response. The leaked documents show that […]
Next week Thursday, a claim brought by the Belize Police Association against Commissioner of Police Chester Williams goes before Justice Shona Griffith. The claim is in relation to a move by ComPol Williams to have the tenure of the president of the association serve a term of only two years. Shortly after taking over in […]
As it relates to the accountability of the Belize Police Association, we’ve reported that the top brass of the department has intervened and made requests to the association for an audit of the collections received from its membership. Despite several requests made by former ComPol Whylie, the financials have not been forthcoming. But as News […]
