We start tonight with important developments in the case of Amy Forte, a Belmopan resident who wrote the office of Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources Dean Barrow on Tuesday. She contends that her name was wrongly used to underline a swap of land on the private island of Mosquito Caye, located next to […]
This evening, News Five obtained a letter sent by Andre Vega’s attorney, Estevan Perera, to C.E.O. in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Sharon Ramclam Young. Basically, the son of the former Deputy Prime Minister says he is prepared to relinquish the seven-acre Mosquito Caye property to prevent further issues. But the point is moot in […]
This afternoon, the People’s United Party registered its disgust with the latest revelations. In a forty-five minute press conference at its headquarters, Independence Hall, leader John Briceño assailed the Prime Minister for his failure to act sooner and for what he called attempts to downplay the involvement of his ex-deputy, and set out a list […]
As the Prime Minister contended in our interview after the House meeting of August twenty-first, the transactions detailed in a prior set of leaked documents involving the Vegas appeared to be legitimate on the surface and “I don’t know that there is any actionable illegality there.” But he had previously stated that he had not […]
So what needs to be done differently to address the ‘hotbed of corruption’, as the Prime Minister himself termed the Ministry of Natural Resources to Belizean-Americans in Los Angeles in October of 2013? There have been several recent bills brought to the House of Representatives for first reading and the Opposition Leader today called them […]
Briceño also discussed the role of various Vega family members and acquaintances in roping off the Lands Ministry for their personal grab-tub, most notably former National Estate Officer and Justice of the Peace Darlene Padron, whom he alleges has done this many times before. It appears, he said, that this was a mostly internal cabal […]
The fatal shooting of thirty-year-old Dwayne Almendarez on August fifteenth, in Yo Creek Village, has resulted in a single charge of manslaughter being brought against a customs officer earlier today. Almendarez was among several passengers on a commuter bus who were involved in an altercation with B.D.F. and customs officers at a checkpoint along the […]
No one has been charged for the discarding of a baby boy in the east canal of Belize City. The discovery of a dead baby with its umbilical cord still attached occurred on July twentieth; it was inside a black plastic bag and was fished out of the waterway by a sanitation worker who was […]
Figures released by the Statistical Institute of Belize show that economic activity slowed down to some extent in July. Goods and services went up slightly, while imports and exports registered a drop. The price of fuel, however, went up considerably in the past year. The rise in transport costs were attributed in large part to […]
Back to the issue of fraudulent land transactions….The Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry issued a strong release today condemning the corruption at the Ministry of Natural Resources. It says inaction by G.O.B. on the abuse of our natural and fiscal resources is no longer accepted. According to the Chamber, despite evidence of blatant abuse […]
Despite the signing of the UNCAC last December, corruption continues to be pervasive. Usher calls on all stakeholders to come together and put in place a mechanism to keep all politicians in check. On the Phone: Nikita Usher, President, BCCI “Only a few weeks ago, we saw the audit report on a few ministries […]
Following his press conference, Opposition Leader John Briceño was questioned on several other burning national issues. The United Democratic Party this past Sunday held a contested convention for the post of Mayor and councilor for the Belize City Council that resulted in Dion Leslie being elected over Philip Willoughby and seven of the incumbent councilors, […]
In Guatemala, the Constitutional Court has upheld its provisional ruling that President Jimmy Morales cannot expel Ivan Velasquez, a veteran Colombian prosecutor who leads Guatemala’s International Commission against Impunity, known as CICIG. In seeking to expel Velasquez, President Morales dismissed his Foreign Minister, Carlos Raul Morales, for not following through on his order. Guatemalan prosecutors […]
Overnight on Monday, a burglary was reported at a house of worship in Belize City. Enterprising thieves broke into the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses on Cemetery Road and stole various electronic items which church members raised donations to acquire. This afternoon we spoke to church elder Abel Vera to find out what happened. […]
On Tuesday night, four finalists in KTV, the Remix, brought their ‘A’ game to the stage in the last round of competition to determine who will walk away with ten thousand dollars in cash. It has been a journey of ups and downs which they have taken in good strike, round by round. Tonight, we […]
It’s been weeks since the media has been invited to a meet and greet organized by the Police Department. But today, we found out from the Regional Commander for Eastern Division South, Senior Superintendent Marco Vidal, that members of the department have been meeting with residents, but that the media’s presence has been preventing the […]
There were simultaneous meet and greets taking place all over the south side of Belize City. While we caught up with Senior Superintendent Vidal on Lindo’s Alley, officers were also on the ground on Love, Pride and Sweet Avenue, and surrounding areas. Vidal says gang activities have raised alarm among residents especially with the upcoming […]
Ten youths from the Mayflower area in Belize City received their certificates in food preparation and hospitality training today after concluding a summer program with the ITVET through the Department of Youth Services Mayflower Youth Center. As we found out from Jamie Rocke, the program was requested by the residents of the Mayflower area. […]
