A protest proceeded as planned in Orange Walk today. But what started as a peaceful march against the “hot bed of corruption’’ at the Ministry of Lands escalated into a violent riot at the Tower Hill Bridge. We start our coverage of today’s events with the tear gassing of Belizeans, primarily from the Corozal and […]
But before the police would descend on the protestors, by nine this morning, thousands gathered along the San Lorenzo Road where the march kicked off. Their call was for the resignation of Area Rep Gaspar Vega who presided over large scale land grab benefitting his family and friends. But not too far away, only a […]
As we’ve mentioned, beleaguered Orange Walk North Area Representative Gaspar Vega was met by a group of supporters outside of his residence this morning. While those numbers paled in comparison to what his political opponent was able to draw, Vega says he’s satisfied with the show of support. Gaspar Vega, OW North Area Representative […]
Vega, during a brief interview with the media, also attempted to explain the situation at the Lands Department while he was in office and the many efforts he purportedly made to encourage Belizeans to purchase and own properties across the country. Gaspar Vega, Area Representative, Orange Walk North “If you review all the messages […]
Standing firmly in Vega’s corner is Belmopan Area Representative John Saldivar. Saldivar has been an ally of Gapi Vega since his unsuccessful attempt at deputy leadership of the United Democratic Party. Not only does Saldivar say that should Vega offer himself once again for candidacy in Orange Walk North that he would win, he also […]
A special session of the Bar Association of Belize met in Belize City at the Radisson Hotel on Tuesday night. Its purpose was to consider its position on the appointment of Jamaican-American attorney and former prosecutor Franz Parke, based in Miami, to the Court of Appeal as a justice. Parke has extensive legal experience, but […]
There are reports to News Five that members of the social partners are likely to raise objections based on the position of the Bar. The Opposition Leader John Briceño is by law the sole person to whom the Prime Minister must consult for his opinion before recommending the appointment to the Governor General and he […]
Banner referred us to the Bar’s case against the Government decided in their favor earlier this year in the Caribbean Court of Justice concerning tenure of judges and also setting out guidelines for appointment. She also noted that a specific body in the Caribbean appoints C.C.J. judges and the similarly named Judicial and Legal Services […]
A shooting overnight on the north end of Ambergris Caye turned murder today after police discovered the body of thirty-six-year-old Rudolph Eric Pitts. Just before nine p.m. on Tuesday, twenty-two-year-old Edgar Rene Lopez was transported to the San Pedro Polyclinic with multiple gunshot wounds to the head, left arm and shoulder. Before being airlifted to […]
The Senate Special Select Committee resumed public hearings this afternoon and we will have details of the testimony of Director of Immigration Diana Locke shortly. But first, the Government of Belize has sent its strongest signal yet that it wants an early end to the Committee’s deliberations, targeting their finances. In a letter dated August […]
As many as one hundred visa applications appear weekly on the desk of the visa vetting committee established in the aftermath of the Won Hong Kim/Elvin Penner scandal. It was one of the two oversight committees put in place to help regulate the activities of the Immigration Department; the other is the nationality review committee. […]
In February, News Five reported on a temporary backlog of passport processing in Belmopan due to issues with the antiquated system in place. At that time the Ministry, represented by junior minister Beverly Williams, indicated that once a new system was procured it would be slowly implemented alongside the current system. Months later, according to […]
The Senate Committee has heard many different explanations for how Won Hong Kim’s picture got into the Belize Passport Information System despite his never having been in Belize – that a doppelganger went to the passport office; that a photo of his passport picture was taken and entered in the system, and others. But none […]
Police were out on their weekly meet and greet visits today with residents across the city. We went along with the cops on the south side in the Jane Usher Boulevard Area. According to police, the residents want to see more patrols and have more face time with the authorities. When we caught up with […]
When we spoke with Superintendent Arzu, we also asked him about the increasing number of weapons and drugs recently seized, retrieved primarily from empty or abandoned lots. Arzu says that it appears that those empty lots are being craftily used by criminals, but police are dismantling their activities by targeting these lots. Supt. Daniel […]
Hurricane Irma – one of the strongest storms ever recorded in the Atlantic – is hammering Puerto Rico tonight after slamming a string of small northern Caribbean islands where at least three people were killed in the last twenty four hours. The BVI, Saint Maarten, Antigua and Barbuda are among the island nations affected. According […]
For the past several months, we have been telling you about the Social Security Board’s proposed changes in contributions. Consultations have been held around the country and it is yet to be decided how those changes will be made. Today the S.S.B. hosted a mixer where C.E.O. Colin Young said that there has been a […]
There’s other news from the S.S.B. The Social Security Board is slowly changing from its traditional way of receiving and making payments. An online contribution portal is being used for employers to make payments – a system that aims to make the process easy and hassle free for businesses. S.S.B. officer Carlton McKoy explains how […]
Today, carnival band leaders, police and representatives from the National Celebrations Committee and the Belize Carnival Association converged at the Bliss Center for the Performing arts to sign a carnival safety declaration to ensure public security during the 2017 road march. It is the forty-second anniversary of carnival in Belize and the competitive spirit has […]
KTV, the Remix, closed with a bang on Tuesday night with the big announcement of who the people had chosen as this season’s KTV champ. It came down to four worthy finalists, from where a mother of three from Las Flores, Belmopan, won the people’s hearts. Lillian Salazar took home ten thousand dollars, the trophy […]
