In his capacity as Acting Prime Minister, Faber was privy to a letter written by B.N.T.U. President Luke Palacio to PM Barrow in which he requested that the notice issued by the Ministry of Education be withdrawn. While Faber acknowledges a conflict of interest should he respond to the letter, he says his position on […]
The Supreme Court will hear a case brought on behalf of Senator and Government Minister Godwin Hulse in the New Year against former leader of the People’s United Party Francis Fonseca. Back in 2013, Fonseca, as P.U.P. leader, made certain comments about the Won Hong Kim immigration scandal that Hulse considered offensive and defamatory of […]
We reported last week that a Belizean woman was denied her birth certificate because the Vital Statistics Unit is reviewing allegations of fraud involving someone taking Belizean birth certificates and selling them in Mexico. While that investigation is ongoing, the issue revives what Minister of Immigration and Nationality Senator Godwin Hulse is calling an eroding […]
It’s been just over a month since two minors, severely burnt in an act of arson, were airlifted to Shriner’s Hospital for Children in Texas, U.S.A. On October seventh, four days after a tragic fire in the Saint Martin’s area, four-year old Ian Sambula and eight-year old Empress Hamilton were transferred from the K.H.M.H. to […]
But while the children continue the fight for their lives, it is very much emotional time for their mother, Melisa, and family members in Belize. To add salt to the wounds, no one has been detained for the murder and arson. Christopher Hamilton, Uncle of Burn Victims “It’s really crazy due to the fact […]
A special general meeting has been requested by a group of forty-six farmers, including former Citrus Growers Association Chairman Bryon Bowman, to address the current financial state of affairs of CGA. That date is set for Saturday, November twenty-sixth, ahead of a scheduled annual general meeting in December. The farmers are demanding that CGA releases […]
According to Chief Executive Officer Henry Anderson, during the time when there was an issue with Banks Holdings, an agreement was made for new auditors to be assigned to the Citrus Products of Belize Limited. The process of reviewing the company’s financials has been extensive and is expected to be completed in time for an […]
Regional institution UWI and Belize’s national university UB signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen partnerships to improve tertiary level education in Belize. The MOU seeks to foster the relationship through collaborative efforts in a number of areas including research and programme and course development. The goal is to intensify efforts to develop Belize’s human […]
Another MOU was signed today, this time between the UWI Open Campus and the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry. This MOU is a continuation of another MOU signed in 2014 to develop the private sector. It will see the continuation of annual trainings, seminars and sessions in several areas. News Five was at today’s […]
The European Union and the government kicked off an important program on early childhood education over the weekend. The program covers the Corozal and Orange District where preschool teachers are found to be anemic in imparting childhood education. In fact, only a handful of teachers are qualified; the program will assist with establishing a curriculum […]
Thirteen people have been displaced by two separate fires that happened between Friday night and Sunday morning in Belize City. We start with the most recent fire that happened very early on Sunday morning. At least ten people were left without a home after a fire destroyed three buildings on Castle Street, including a Salvation […]
The other fire happened on Friday night around eleven-thirty on First Street, also in Belize City. Sixty-eight year old Maria Ayuso was at home with her grandson when she was awoken by the fire. The elderly woman says that she believes it was arson. While they would normally get electricity from a neighbor, she claimed […]
Minister of Education Patrick Faber has responded openly to criticisms made by the Belize National Teachers Union last Thursday. The Deputy Prime Minister was chided for purportedly being dishonest in addressing the pending matter of teachers’ salaries, following the October eleven-day industrial action. The Minister and the B.N.T.U. have not met to settle makeup time […]
Among the charges made against the ministry is the deliberate bumping up of the submission of pay sheets from the ninth of every month. According to Faber, the collection date has always been on the second, particularly in November when the Ministry of Finance has to prepare additional payroll for teachers towards the end of […]
The academic calendar is made up of at least one hundred and eighty contact days, of which teachers and students are required to be in session. The eleven-day strike in October puts the actual classroom time below that benchmark, prompting Chief Education Officer Doctor Carol Babb to ensure that balance is maintained in fulfilling the […]
We have been reporting on firebrand activist Raymond Rivers’ various run-ins in recent weeks. He has been consistently crying out against the Government through the realm of Facebook. His language has been sharp, unsparing and occasionally threatening, prompting Police to call him in almost two weeks ago for intervention. But one of his alleged targets, […]
There is word tonight that there is financial trouble in one of the major industries in the south. Reports from within the citrus industry say that the Citrus Growers Association is seeking a forty-million-dollar line of credit from the Social Security Board. But the CGA is unable to present audited financials to its membership in […]
According to Chanona, growers have lost fifty-eight percent of ownership in CPBL. Shareholdings have since plummeted from ninety-nine to forty-one percent over the years and farmers are urging the committee of management to come clean about CGA’s assets. Isani Cayetano “You’ve mentioned that there hasn’t been any audit of the association’s financials for quite […]
Tonight there is a report of damage to fisheries and the marine environment in southern Belizean waters. The Southern Environmental Association reports that it has come across the construction of a tourism related development currently occurring in southern Belize on Gladden Caye. According to SEA, last Wednesday, its personnel spotted workers of Lowen Construction Limited […]
The Roman Catholic community, thousands of past students as well as Garifuna communities are tonight mourning the passing of a beloved pastor and educator who dedicated his entire life in service to Christ and to Belize. Ninety-two year old John Stochl, senior member of the Society of Jesus or the Jesuits, died Sunday night at […]
If you are looking for a job, there is a internet service that can make it happen because a new online job search engine is being launched. Employ Me Belize is a website that links employers or companies to potential candidates. By simply logging on to the website, persons looking for employees will be connected […]
A five-day training course in Public Procurement commenced today at the Biltmore Plaza in Belize City. Officials from across the region are taking part to acquire knowledge on the process of procurement as it relates to the economic partnership agreement between European Union and CARIFORUM, the economic arm of CARICOM. The participants will be looking […]
The government is seeking to recover almost a million dollars paid in compensation to Andre Vega, the son of the former DPM and Minister of Natural Resources as well as from attorney Sharon Pitts. Both Vega and Pitts were paid four hundred thousand dollars each as compensation for land that was sold to them when […]
Imagine a born Belizean being told that she could not access her birth certificate because someone else may have her identity. Then, imagine that an investigation has been underway for over a year, and nobody said anything. This is how twenty-nine year old Jazmine Lino of Progresso village, Corozal District, feels after visiting the office […]
A thirteenth Senator will be appointed in January, the choice of Belize’s non-governmental organizations. Following the Prime Minister’s signing of the commencement order for Sections seven and nine of the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution, the NGO community has begun its consultations leading up to formal appointment. However, there are still questions as to how […]
