The first sitting of the House of Representatives for 2012 took place this morning. The Prime Minister did not announce the date for general elections, but you can know it is not far away from the layers of generosity that he piled on. First on the agenda was the reduction of electricity rates, which seem […]
Another pre-election gift was the Christmas disbursement program in which UDP area representatives received forty thousand dollars to spread seasonal joy. Over one point two million dollars were approved and disbursed in December for a Christmas assistance program for the poor. But not everyone was happy with the program. Opposition Leader Francis Fonseca made his […]
At today’s House meeting, aside from the reduction in electricity rates and the S.S.B. write-offs, the prime minister gave a hint that debt forgiveness could possibly extend to DFC mortgages. That is only under consideration, but with elections not far away; that may be one more plum to the electorate. Both the leader of the […]
The highlight of the sitting should have been light rate reduction and the Social Security Board mortgage write-offs. But the controversy surrounding S.S.B. employees who allegedly committed insider trading have marred the entire project. The person at the top of the S.S.B., C.E.O. Merlene Bailey has been suspended pending an investigation on the insider trading. […]
Despite the dilemma of the C.E.O., Merlene Bailey and Internal Auditor, Denise Mahler, the Prime Minister explained the merits of the scheme. Dean Barrow “When I negotiated with S.S.B. to buy these mortgages in order to write them off for Belizean homeowners, I did so on the basis that the people to be covered would […]
The reduction in electricity rates was tabled this morning in the House following Thursday’s initial decision by the Public Utilities Commission. The government owned Belize Electricity Limited on December first, 2011 submitted a request to drop electricity rates by three point four percent, but after reviewing factors including the utility company’s business plan and sales […]
Avery says that there are several factors that made their proposed reduction higher than B.E.L.’s application. One reason is that the utility company had gone to court to block the P.U.C. from conducting a rate review for 2009, which froze electricity rates even though the global price of oil reduced significantly. B.E.L. had challenged the […]
A thirty-eight year old shopkeeper spent five months in jail after being charged for the Carnal Knowledge of a thirteen year old girl. The accused man, Arden Middleton was granted bail of twenty thousand dollars in December, 2011 and he was back in court today for the conclusion of a preliminary inquiry. Chief Magistrate, Ann […]
The driver that hit and killed a man who was riding on the sidewalk of Central American Boulevard also appeared before Chief Magistrate, Ann Marie Smith today. Twenty-eight year old Solemni Chun is facing a slew of charges in connection with the death of forty-four year old construction worker, Roberto Thomas Rivero who succumbed to […]
With the countdown to the March elections and early general elections, a mass naturalization exercise is taking place. The allegation has been due process is not being followed in the rush before the elections and earlier this week an Orange Walk resident disclosed that her house address had been fraudulently used. This morning at the […]
He is trained in the arts, but Hubert Neal Junior’s works are anything but conventional. At first glance his contemporary exhibition looks like the ordinary, but a closer look will reveal masterpieces that tell tales. Neal, who is a Belizean-American, is holding his first exhibition of his most recent works at the Image Factory tonight. […]
Over a hundred youths across the country will be benefitting from basketball skills training from the pros of the Cleveland Basketball School in the United States. A team of trainers and coaches are in the jewel working with the Belize Basketball Federation to execute a five day training session across the country. Today News Five […]
This Saturday, the new president of Guatemala, Otto Perez Molina will be sworn in to replace outgoing president Alvaro Colom. Perez Molina, a former army general, will have to tackle security issues and is giving priority to ending a long-standing U.S. ban on military aid imposed due to concerns about abuses during Guatemala’s thirty-six year […]
