A businessman was shot during a robbery in Silk Grass Village, Stann Creek on Saturday and his common-law wife was robbed of cash. Andriel Chan reported to police that he thought the four men who showed up in a car wanted to buy fuel, but then he saw a gun and decided to run. The […]
A domestic dispute in San Ignacio led to the chopping of a man. Police say the incident happened on Panama Street and when officers responded to the scene, they found George Lopez with multiple chop wounds. Information, according to police is that Lopez went to his mother’s house and got into a dispute with a […]
The controversial Definitive Agreement between the Government of Belize and Portico Enterprises was trashed by Prime Minister John Briceño in the House of Representatives on Friday. On that same day Senior Counsel Godfrey Smith wrote to PM Briceño, essentially putting him on notice that legal action will be taken if the government does not provide […]
In an effort to meet compliance with a host of recommendations from the Caribbean Financial Task Force, a suite of financial legislations was brought back to the Senate for second reading. Among them were the Civil Asset Recovery and Unexplained Wealth Bill that also falls in compliance with the United National Convention Against Corruption. U.D.P. […]
Opposition Leader Shyne Barrow also weighed in on the bill. We heard from Barrow outside the National Assembly on Friday. One of his main objections to the bill has to do with the time limit placed on retroactivity of the proposed legislation. Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Leader of the Opposition “I just wanted to make […]
We have been reporting about the presence of narco traffickers in southern Belize and how the security forces are working to mitigate those activities. But, the presence of narco traffickers is also a huge issue in northern Belize. The situation in the north has become so bad that the Government of Belize is allocating approximately […]
As we said, the Government of Belize is allocating an additional one million dollars to the Belize Police Department, to assist with its fight against narco trafficking in northern Belize. The Briceño administration sought approval from the House of Representatives on Friday to allocate the funds as part of its sixty-nine million dollars Supplementary Allocation […]
In the wee small hours of Saturday a fire erupted inside one of the oldest structures on Regent Street in Belize City. Once the home of the Eusey family, the building, at the corner of South and Regent Streets, was an old shingled structure set to be demolished. The fire spread quickly, consuming the building […]
A fire has destroyed all the contents of a house in the Vista del Mar area. The fire was reported on Sunday at a residence occupied by William Neal, the Communications Director at Belize Sugar Industries Limited. Neal, who is also a well-known media personality, had reportedly left his house and a neighbor called to […]
A sixty-nine million dollar Supplementary Appropriation Bill was brought from the House of Representatives and debated today inside the Senate. Eamon Courtenay, the Senator for Government Business, sought to explain why the Briceño administration found it necessary to request that further sums be allocated only three months after the 2023 budget was introduced. U.D.P. Senator […]
Business Senator Kevin Herrera and Union Senator Elena Smith also weighed in on the matter. Senator Herrera contended that during the budget debate he flagged the sum of money that was being allocated to the Ministry of National Defense and Border Security as inadequate. Senator Smith argued that while public officers and teachers sacrificed for […]
Today, the Department of Youth Services launched an Entrepreneurship Hub as a space for young business owners to operate their business. From cosmetology to food and beverage industry and even printing services – they can all be found in one place. It’s the answer to a youth needs assessment survey that is finally coming to […]
There is a new director for the National Sports Council and she is no stranger to sports. Iris Centeno, Women’s Director at the Football Federation of Belize, took up the appointment last week after former director Ian Cal resigned from the post. As we reported, Cal’s contract expired at the end of March, but continued […]
As we reported last week, transport officer Andrea Peters was charged with extortion following an investigation by Independence Police on an allegation made by a woman who claims that she was being extorted by three transport officers. The three officers who had set up a routine checkpoint on the highway were taken into custody and […]
There have been multiple reports of shortage of license plates and stickers, but we have not been able to confirm until today that, for a few months, a shortfall was experienced and the ministry has moved to resolve the issue. But in the process, did the finance officer within the Department of Transport pay out […]
While with Minister of Transport Rodwell Ferguson, he also gave brief comments on a planned protest by Serrano’s Bus Service in Ladyville. The bus line is saying that they’ve made significant investments to become compliant with transport regulations, but nevertheless lost their road service permit. Minister Ferguson says that a decision was taken by the […]
Goodnight and welcome to another edition of Sports Monday, I am Paul Lopez. “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life”. That is a quote from Legendary Boxer, Muhammad Ali. First for tonight, we take a look at the Belize City Softball Association’s Fast Pitch Softball tournament. Two […]
This morning, following a series of fiery exchanges in the House of Representatives, Prime Minister John Briceño rubbished the Definitive Agreement signed by government and Portico in 2020. Tearing up a copy of the controversial deal comes several weeks after the very same document, along with proposed legislation, was presented to Cabinet. As we’ve reported, […]
Before the prime minister shredded the original version of the Definitive Agreement, the Leader of the Opposition was allowed to ask the first of three questions submitted last Thursday. That question triggered a back-and-forth across the aisle that ultimately led to the prime minister asking Shyne Barrow if he was being paid to take the […]
Speaker of the House, Valerie Woods had to call a recess during the debate on the Definitive Agreement after an argument erupted between the Leader of the Opposition and members of the government. It began with Barrow rising from his seat to raise a point of order. Following his point of order, a government representative […]
According to Prime Minister Briceño, as many as seventeen titles for lands adjacent to Northern Lagoon were issued just a few days before the November 2020 general elections. He says that those properties were subsequently sold to Portico. Prime Minister John Briceño “The honorable member from Corozal North, who he has sitting beside him. […]
During the heated exchange, the Prime Minister said that a total of eight hundred and fifty acres of land were sold for the rock-bottom price of one hundred and seventeen thousand dollars. He says those properties were acquired by Portico a few weeks later. Prime Minister John Briceño “The Definitive Agreement is useless without […]
Reporters had an opportunity to speak with both the Leader of the Opposition and Prime Minister John Briceño outside the National Assembly following the debate on the Definitive Agreement. Opposition Leader Barrow said that he reached out to Senator Michael Peyrefitte after Prime Minister John Briceño brought to light that questionable email on the Definitive […]
But, is Portico’s agreement legally binding? When reporters posed that question today to Prime Minister John Briceño, his answer was that such a determination is for the courts. Prime Minister Briceño also disputed claims that the Definitive Agreement was taken before Cabinet with a strong recommendation for approval. According to the Prime Minister, there was […]
Prime Minister John Briceño also confirmed that the Government of Belize is engaged in discussions with Royal Caribbean. The cruise company has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Portico and Boskalis, with the condition that the project receives legislative support from the National Assembly. The Leader of the Opposition has called on the government […]
