If you have been tuning in to live radio, you may be aware of a violent confrontation taking place on the Belcan Bridge in Belize City as protesters clash with police. News Five?s Patrick Jones is just back from the scene. Janelle Chanona ?Patrick, what can you tell us is happening there?? Patrick Jones ?Janelle, […]
Our cameraman Brent Toombs is just back with us. He was stationed at the Belcan Bridge this evening, and he is going to bring us up to date on what is happening at the Belcan Bridge. Janelle Chanona ?Brent, what?s the latest?? Brent Toombs ?Well Stephen Ferguson, our driver and tonight my bodyguard, big up […]
At the same time that students and Opposition politicians were expressing their dissatisfaction in the streets, government officials were trying hard to put their best face forward. For the P.U.P. that face belonged to Minister of Education Francis Fonseca. This afternoon Fonseca was asked by News 5’s Patrick Jones how he thought the drama would […]
The plague of sabotage that brought the nation’s telecommunications system to its knees has spread to the supply of electricity. According to a release from B.E.L., around six-thirty Tuesday evening vandals cut down six poles supporting the company’s one hundred and fifteen kilovolt line from Mexico. The result was a series of blackouts lasting over […]
With the phones disconnected at B.T.L., a contempt of court ruling hanging over its head in Miami, investigations probing misconduct at S.S.B. and D.F.C., a dangerously low credit rating, and the I.M.F. coming to town, it’s pretty clear that the government of the ruling People’s United Party is learning new definitions for the word “pressure”. […]
After trying all day to get an official reaction from government we received a call from the Press Office around five-thirty that the Prime Minister, after a long day of meetings, was in a position to talk. News 5’s Stewart Krohn is just back in the studio with that tape…here’s what Said Musa had to […]
If you listened on the radio or watched portions of the Senate Select Committee hearings into the Social Security Board, you were probably riveted by the testimony from General Manager Narda Garcia. Well this week, Chairman of the United Democratic Party, Douglas Singh, sent not one but three separate letters requesting urgent action be taken […]
The following is a recorded statement released by the Prime Minister. Neither he nor any government spokesman would make any additional comment. It ran on Channel 5 just prior to our newscast. My Fellow Belizeans: Our Government has publicly declared on a number of occasions that, as regards the government?s 52% shareholding in BTL, our […]
The intentions have been clear for weeks but it was not until today in the House of Representatives that Government formalised the results of lengthy negotiations with the nation’s unions and business groups, over taxes and political reforms. Patrick Jones reports from Belmopan. Prime Minister Said Musa ?Madam Speaker this Bill represents a very strong […]
It was not the scene that many people expected but the tension inside the House was probably greater than that among those who demonstrated outside. While the protesters were orderly, they were also determined. Compared to the last demonstration on the steps of the national assembly building, today?s protest was a low key affair. But […]
They reserved the right to strike under a February agreement with Government if their demands for no new taxes were not met. And on Friday, member organisations of the National Trade Union Congress will march on Belmopan to tell the Prime Minister they are not happy with the new taxes that went into effect on […]
Although the unions were busy planning for their protest in Belmopan, this afternoon they took time out to join with the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry to sign a “cooperation agreement”. That agreement, signed by Chamber President Arturo Vasquez and N.T.U.C.B. President Horris Patten, establishes a working relationship between the two organisations, based on […]
At that point the Chamber’s executive director, Kevin Herrera, took a stab at answering the question: “What type of tax system does the Chamber want?” Kevin Herrera, General Manager, B.C.C.I. ?I think your question was in terms of the principle of equity. That principle states that everybody would pay a little but the whole may […]
The recent public debate has revolved around how much excise tax to impose on beer and whether the environmental tax should be one percent or two…but today key members of cabinet said that the real solution to the nation’s financial problems lies in creating a new, more equitable system of taxation. Speaking at a press […]
One key part of the overall reform will involve land taxes. This morning Minister of Natural Resources Johnny Briceño, spoke of changes now being made to redress anomalies in the present system that have discriminated against certain types of landowners, particularly in the productive sector. Those changes will involve the creation of a larger number […]
He received the news on Friday that a U.S. Federal Court in Miami has ordered the Belize Government to return control of Belize Telecommunications Ltd. to Jeffrey Prosser. Today Prime Minister Said Musa–himself an attorney–chose to put a different spin on the decision and continued to maintain that with a little bit of goodwill, everything […]
“What do women want from politics?” That will be the burning question at the heart of what is being billed as a “passionate and informative” dialogue on Saturday morning in Belize City. The women’s arm of the United Democratic Party is organising the event, but coordinator Dianne Haylock says women from either side of the […]
With the threat of more industrial action from the country’s unions, legal battles being waged in three countries over BTL and the ever present danger of dissension within its own ranks, there’s no question that the Musa administration has its hands full. Today government spokesmen went on the offensive taking to the airwaves to garner […]
It doesn’t come as much of a surprise but the opposition United Democratic Party has condemned the government’s decision to implement new tax measures and its failure to follow the suggestions of the N.T.U.C.B. and Chamber of Commerce for alternative budget measures. In a release issued today the U.D.P. called upon Belizeans to “recommit themselves […]
March first is less than a week away and little has been heard regarding the implementation of new taxes that had been delayed from the first of February. But this week the halls of power in Belmopan have echoed with intense discussions between Government officials and representatives of Belize’s labour movement. On GOB’s side of […]
After enduring six months of attacks from within and without, the Peoples United Party finally received a much needed boost this weekend. It took the form of a national convention that was noteworthy for both its size and ability to avoid internal acrimony. Official estimates were not available but the sea of blue and white […]
While the leadership of the Peoples United Party could bask in a rare weekend of unity and adulation, come this morning they were back to facing the reality of a financial problem that requires cash–not “Que Vivas”–to solve. The particular situation at hand was the need to borrow more money to pay off old debts. […]
It’s a big weekend for the ruling Peoples United Party with its national convention on Sunday in Santa Elena, Cayo, and perhaps a more important meeting of the National Party Council on Saturday in Belize City. At stake are the two co-equal posts of deputy leader and–by extention–the future top spot in the party hierarchy. […]
In addition to the competition for the two deputy party leader positions, nominations have also been received for deputy national Campaign Manager and Chairman of the PR Committee. Francis Fonseca, the PUP Party Chairman, told news five today that while the National Council is expected to make the selections for these posts on Saturday, if […]
After staying out of the headlines for a couple of weeks, tonight PUP area representatives and former ministers Mark Espat and Cordel Hyde have weighed in with their opinions on this weekend’s national convention. In a joint release from the Lake Independence and Albert committees entitled, “A Call for Greater Democracy”, Espat and Hyde say […]
