As the national referral hospital for the country, many Belizeans rely on the services of Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital for life saving procedures. While many times, it’s only the cases of alleged negligence that make it to the news, there are many more stories of new and successful treatments coming out of the hospital on […]
On Tuesday night we brought you Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington’s broadside against Senator and former Foreign Minister Eamon Courtenay. Not only does he disagree with the proposition to immediately amend the Maritime Areas Act to restore Belize’s full portion of territorial sea and other entitlements in the south, he attacked Courtenay as seeking […]
Following debate in the Senate a week ago, Senator Courtenay was slightly dismissive of Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte’s stated concern that Belize was jumping the gun in terms of allowing negotiations to play out. But today he offered a more measured response as to what could happen if either country says no at referendum time […]
Another issue Courtenay addressed today relate to comments made by Elrington in a News Five interview on November twenty-eighth in Belmopan, following a Cabinet meeting. The Caribbean Court of Justice made a series of rulings against the Government in the settlement of Universal Health Services and Belize Telemedia. There was also one against Elrington personally […]
As Courtenay says, Elrington was seen to be taking advantage of Progresso Heights Limited’s principals, abusing his position of power. Even so and despite denying their relationship, he won the case at the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. But at the Caribbean Court of Justice, it was a different story, as according to Courtenay, […]
The sudden unraveling of Jorge Jaen’s dubious past has set tongues wagging. The Miami-based developer has managed to wangle a memorandum of understanding for a multi-million dollar development project for the Efrain Guerrero International Airport in San Pedro. A little digging by local media has uncovered previous convictions for fraudulent activity in the U.S. dating […]
This evening, we caught up with People’s United Party leader John Briceño at a political event. We will have more from that on Thursday, but we asked him to clarify the reasons why the P.U.P. chose to introduce the motion to debate the amendment to the Maritime Areas Act through the Senate rather than the […]
And in financial news, there is information to News Five that as much as sixty million dollars of Belize Bonds traded on Tuesday at a fire sale price of thirty-four cents to the dollar. From what we have learnt a private Swiss Bank bought the bonds but the seller is not confirmed at this time. […]
There was a freak accident in Independence on Tuesday evening, when a man who was cutting down a few limbs from an almond tree was suddenly electrocuted. Hugo Polanco was operating a chainsaw as he was cutting off several branches from the tree, when he accidentally made contact with a high-tension wire. The intense electrical […]
In mid-November, a pair of officers attached to the Placencia Police Substation found themselves in hot water after taking nude photos of male cadets who were on a camping trip sometime earlier. Tonight, the Youth Cadet Corps is once again getting a bad rap, this time the Pomona chapter is being investigated by the Professional […]
About two months ago, we told you about the telethon initiative to raise funds for hurricane victims in the Caribbean that was being led by the Belize City Council and the Council of Churches. Today the group called a short press briefing to give an update on the monies raised and to present the funds […]
As the clock ticks to the celebration of Christmas, across the country many are sharing the Spirit of Christmas with underprivileged children and their families with the gift of giving. In the city today, two corporate citizens in the north and south sides ushered in the festive season for hundreds of children. News Five’s Isani […]
Not to be outdone by its social partners, the Belize Police Department is also busy handling its share of gift giving. From Secret Santa to hampers for the needy, the men and women of law enforcement are hitting the streets hard this week. Earlier today, we followed several north side cops as they covered the […]
It seems even the People’s United Party has finally caught the Christmas spirit. This afternoon, we were invited to a celebration for some forgotten City residents – the elderly population. They were treated to an afternoon and evening out at St. Martin de Porres’ Parish’s Swift Hall, complete with music, food, drinks and special activities. […]
Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington is back from the recent SICA summit in Panama where he met with his new Guatemalan counterpart, Sandra Erica Jovel Polanco, appointed in August after the exit of Carlos Raul Morales. We will have more on their discussions including progress in the setting up of the I.C.J. referendum shortly, […]
Foreign Minister Elrington made note that the Cabinet is reviewing the amendment to the M.A.A. But he went on the offensive against Courtenay, accusing him of all sorts of things and trying to take advantage of the situation for two reasons. He argues that the slightest spook of the Guatemalans could postpone the April referendum, […]
The criminal past of Jorge Abraham Jaen, the Miami investor behind the multi-million dollar investment in the Basil Jones Airstrip to convert it into a full-scale international airport, continues to unravel. News Five has received copies of the Articles of Association for International Airport Alliance LLC, the apparent parent company of International Airport Alliance Belize […]
There’s more on the proposed international airport. The People’s United Party today reacted to the announcement of a proposed multimillion dollar international airport on San Pedro. Calling it ‘Déjà Vu All Over Again,’ the P.U.P. says that the news that the investor is actually a realtor based in Miami with no experience in building or […]
A new home for the holidays is a wish for many at this time of the year. With space a scarce commodity in the Old Capital, any initiative to provide shelter is welcomed. But residents of a ‘long barracks’ property scheduled to be torn down are up in arms tonight, because they feel their area […]
Earlier we made mention of the first meeting between Foreign Minister Elrington and his Guatemalan counterpart, Sandra Jovel Polanco who succeeded Carlos Raul Morales in August. Polanco is the first female Foreign Minister of Guatemala. She asked for the meeting on the sidelines of the SICA summit and a full rundown of Belize-Guatemala affairs was […]
It’s arguably one of the most trafficked bridges in the country of Belize, but also one of the more poorly maintained. The Government of Belize and M and M Engineering signed an eleven-point-three million dollar contract to construct a new Roaring Creek Bridge connecting the village to Belmopan at Mile forty-eight on the George Price […]
Santa is in town! He is here to bring some cheer to needy families and so today he was out in full force giving away hams around the city. This is the fourth year that he is helping to make some families’ Christmas brighter but he is not ready to disclose his identity. The secret […]
As we head to the end of the year, the murder count keeps going up. The bloodbath started on Friday morning with the murder of Jaime Pelayo in Orange Walk. That homicide was followed by murders in Independence village in the south, in the capital, Belmopan, and in Belize City. Mark Vasquez, a well known […]
The capital city, Belmopan, according to our archives, has seen no less than eight cab drivers murdered between 2009 and 2017. While each circumstance is different, the coincidence is too pat for residents, who like to think of themselves as a close-knit community. The latest murder victim is close to home, as sixty-nine year old […]
In southern Belize, a twenty-one-year-old student was stabbed and killed in Independence Village. Several men attacked Victor Pau and stabbed him several times on Saturday night. His body was found early on Sunday morning. Police say they are questioning three men in connection with Pau’s killing. His family say they are devastated by his murder […]
