While the Prime Minister was crunching the numbers at the Biltmore, the Senate Select investigation was taking place in the capital where insights into the immigration illegalities were coming from witnesses. Now, it took a summons carrying more legal weight than an extended invitation, but today former Belize City Deputy Mayor Eric Chang appeared with […]
Chang also specifically denied helping anyone obtain Belizean visas, nationality and passport except in the case of a Taiwanese-Belizean whose daughter had obtained nationality by descent and needed a passport as part of her documentation to attend school. The involvement he spoke to was germane to a discussion as part of a gathering at his […]
All good stories, perhaps, are long stories, and the case of Won Hong Kim is a good one. The revelation that former Minister of State Elvin Penner assisted the jailed South Korean fugitive to obtain Belizean nationality and a passport was strange enough. But the unveiling of Eric Chang as a possible accomplice was even […]
Outside, Chang consented to answer a few questions from the press. He reiterated that he was here to clear his name and that he felt that went well enough. But when asked if he felt he was believable, all he would say is that it was a matter of opinion and that he did the […]
Another witness who had to be summoned to appear before the Senate Special Select Committee was accountant Patrick Tillett, who readily provided details of his involvement in applying for visas – which are not routinely sold. Tillett, who at the time was also a financial controller with the Belize City Council, testified that facilitating visas […]
Unbelievable as it may sound, Tillett says there are people willing to pay thousands of dollars to have someone like him work through immigration agents to get their documents facilitated, assuming that is that the process was above-board. In this case, however, he found that there was something wrong with the visas. Tillett takes the […]
The Senators, to say the least, found it unbelievable that Tillett would be willing to cover the loss on the visas if the transaction, as he insisted, was above-board. Try though they might, they were not able to budge Tillett from his testimony. After Tillett claimed to be unsure of whether he could be considered […]
The final witness at today’s public hearing was former Immigration Officer at the Western Border Station, Lindsay Wade. He was formally accused in the Auditor General’s Report as the man who took the missing visa foils from the Cabinet over the Christmas holiday, a charge he denies. Wade says the one and only time he […]
Turning back to the Super Bond, the proposed sale of shares in B.T.L. and B.E.L. also caught the eyes of bondholders during the renegotiation process. According to PM Barrow, creditors wanted in on the profits by including those proceeds in the Super Bond. It is a move that was similar to a request made in […]
According to the Prime Minister, the involvement of the I.M.F., as a condition of the proposal being approved, is nothing earth-shattering since government meets with the financial agency annually to review Belize’s economic performance. Prime Minister Dean Barrow “People don’t seem to understand that we have agreed that if we don’t meet certain targets […]
Financial Secretary Joseph Waight has also weighed in on the successful outcome of the Super Bond renegotiation. He spoke directly to the need for additional tax measures to be implemented. While there will be no increases in tariffs for businesses, nor will there be taxes on the wage bill, the Fin Sec says that government […]
Across the world, March eight is observed as International Women’s Day. It is a day set aside to celebrate women’s achievements from political to social – and simultaneously calls for gender equality. The day brings together governments, women’s organizations, and other partners to highlight the activities. Today in Belize, to observe this global event, POWA and […]
On Friday, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal, whose jurisdiction includes the state of Florida, upheld a ruling in favor of businessman Glenn Godfrey. The initial decision, in respect of INTELCO leasing telecoms equipment to government, was handed down by the U.S. Court for the Southern District of Florida. Successive governments compensated Godfrey for the […]
Belize and holders of the Superbond have hammered out an agreement to restructure the terms of the notes for the third time in a decade. After months of negotiations, a committee representing the majority of bondholders has endorsed a revised proposal from Belize that reduces the interest rate on the note and shortens its maturity. […]
In its daily news release, the Government gives all credit to the Prime Minister for cutting a deal which it say puts the country in a much better position to be able to service the debt. A press conference by Prime Minister Dean Barrow to provide further details, but Government is already saying savings will […]
The cost of fuel has increased for the second time in less than one week, particularly for premium fuel. At midnight Friday, a nineteen-cent increase went into effect for premium fuel. This takes the price from ten dollars twenty-five cents to ten dollars forty-four cents. This followed a one-cent increase for diesel to nine dollars […]
The U.S. State Department has issued its annual country report on Human Rights practices, focusing on policing and sex orientation issues as the major human rights violations committed locally for the year 2016. Those were followed by corruption by government agents; lack of protection for refugees; domestic violence; discrimination against women; sexual abuse of children; […]
Rising attorney Philip Palacio passed suddenly following a mostly private battle with cancer and a brain tumor, for which he was undergoing surgery in the United States. He started out in journalism but subsequently went to law school and returned as an advocate for the poorer classes, taking on several cause celebres. His last major […]
There is another death of a prominent Belizean to report tonight, this time in Orange Walk Town. Dental surgeon Doctor Carl Meggs was active in the medical community up north and was an advisor to the Orange Walk Town Council. He was found dead Friday evening at his dental clinic by his common-law-wife after she […]
The All Party Parliamentary Group for Belize has been reactivated. The group, whose purpose is to encourage and foster relations between the UK and Belize, has become dormant over the years, so an annual general meeting was held today to get the group going. Members of Parliament and Members of the House of Lords attended […]
Another highly competitive race in the Belikin La Ruta Maya Challenge concluded on Monday in Belize City near the Bottom Dalla Store. Two new teams went on to place in the canoe race which kicked off in the twin towns of San Ignacio/Santa Elena on Friday. News Five’s Duane Moody followed the race from start […]
Good evening, I’m James Adderley and this is Sports Monday. {Feature on weekend sporting highlights….}
There are still more questions than answers in the manhandling of a B.D.F. recruit videoed on cell phone during a training program on January eighth. The images of recruit Michael Rivas crying out as he is pushed into a trench has stirred controversy on whether or not the tactics used went too far. B.D.F. commander […]
Following the airing of our story on Thursday night, News Five obtained copies of interviews conducted over the past three days with officers of the Bravo and Alpha Platoons involved in the training program. For the most part, those interviewed do not place themselves near the trench where B.D.F. recruit 2-2-9-7-0-2 Michael Rivas was thrown […]
The annual La Ruta Maya River Challenge kicked off bright and early this morning in the west. The waters of the Macal River provided the perfect setting for the start of the race. But this year, less than fifty canoes manned by three paddlers each will be competing over the extended holiday weekend as they […]
