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The San Pedro Sun
Caye Caulker Woman charged for cocaine possession
A woman living on the island of Caye Caulker was arrested and charged for the offence of drugs trafficking. 22-year-old Charlenne Young, a domestic of Back Street in Caye Caulker village was busted with cocaine when police were on patrol on Wednesday October 9th.
According to Police sometime around 4PM on Wednesday, a team of Caye Caulker Police personnel were conducting mobile patrol near the Palapa Area on Front Street when their attention was drawn to a woman acting suspiciously while with a group. One of the female officers proceeded to search the lady, later identified as Young. A search on the person yield three small transparent plastic bag containing a white powder suspected to be cocaine hidden in Young's brassiere.
National News: More scandal unravels at the Immigration and Nationality Department
The scandal involving the former Minister of State in the Ministry of Immigration and Nationality Elvin Penner is heating up again. Attorney Arthur Saldivar disclosed on Monday October 7th that 150 nationality applications were leaked out from the Immigration and Nationality Department and shows that the embattled Penner processed and signed all applications and they all contained inconsistencies. The latest revelation came on the deadline set by the People's United Party (PUP) for Penner to resign or face recall.
PUP initiates the recall of Elvin Penner
On October 2nd, the Opposition PUP's Party Leader, Francis Fonseca wrote to Penner advising him to resign as standard Bearer for Cayo North East by Monday October 7th, or face a recall by his constituency. "If you fail to resign�by 5PM on Monday October 7th, the PUP along with the electors of that division will initiate your recall as the Divisional Representative of Cayo North East Electoral Division in accordance with the Recall of Elected Representatives Act No. 20 of 2010" wrote Fonseca.
Hol Chan Marine Reserve receives $199,500 grant from PACT
Hol Chan Marine Reserve, working through the Belize Fisheries Department, was awarded one of six grants given out by the Protected Areas Conservation Trust (PACT). The grant award ceremony took place on Monday October 7th at the Belize City House of Culture, where the Ambergris Caye based Hol Chan Marine Reserve was awarded $199,500. A total of $736,769 in new project grants was given to six different groups in the country.
Counting the ways to spend your days on Ambergris Caye: ACES "Crocodile Scientific Investigators" CSI Adventure (#2)
Looking for a once-in-a-life time experience? Do you enjoy educational, hands-on experiences? Do critters with big teeth scare and thrill you? Ranked as the #1TripAdvisor activity on Ambergris Caye, the American Crocodile Education Sanctuary/ACES team of experts are a non-profit organization permitted by the Belize Forest Department to conduct ongoing research and management of this magnificent, modern-day dinosaur. Join the team as they night "eye-shine" the mangrove lagoons for American crocodiles aboard the Swamp Thing. Learn all about these protected apex predators, the delicate mangrove and marine habitats of Ambergris Caye and other native wildlife in the area. Excitement adds to the experience when witnessing nail-biting efforts to catch, tag and release wild crocs. Croc rescues and releases often coincide with the evening. A great family adventure for kids and adults alike. Visit their website at http://www.americancrocodilesanctuary.org/crocodile-expeditions or call 631-6366.
Ambergris Today
Seafood Market Opens in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye
Island residents, businesses and tourists can now enjoy the perks of shopping for seafood in one particular location and can be sure it's the best products at great prices. San Pedro, Ambergris Caye now counts with a newly opened seafood market, the National Fishermen Producers Co-operative Society Ltd.
So what can you find at the new sea food market? Products include Lump Crab Meat, Caribbean Crab, Shrimps, Scallops, Crab Claws, Salmon Fillet, Smoked Salmon, Squid Rings, Octopus, Fish Fillet and Whole Fish. Seasonal products include Spiny Lobster Tails, Market Cleaned Conch and Ground Conch.
Barbara Bradley, Executive Secretary of National Fishermen Producers Co-operative Ltd, explained that presently they are accepting produce from local fishermen but only if they are taken to Belize City.
San Pedro Darts Team Receive Donation from Town Council
The San Pedro Darts Team will be hosting the 19th Annual Belize National Darts Tournament at the San Pedro Lions Den from Friday, October 11, 2013 to Sunday, October 13, 2013. Councilor Gaby Nu�ez presented a check of $1,000 on behalf of the San Pedro Town Council to Melanie Paz of the San Pedro Darts Team.
The money donated will go towards the purchasing of trophies, new dart boards and other items needed for the tournament set up. The Belize National Darts Tournament will bring in about 100 players and supporters to the event and everyone is invited to attend. The tournament commences on Friday, October 11, 2013 at 6p.m. There will be lots to eat and drink.
Misc Belizean Sources
I am Ramon's Video
A short video describing the rebuilding at Ramon's. In news from San Pedro, Ramon's Village says they're well on their way to recovery, and the management has set a goal to be fully reopened by the end of the year.
They've been hard at work to rebuild the damaged parts of the resort, and in order to promote the reopening, they've started production on a video series called "We Are Ramon's" to showcase far along the resort has come since the fire, which destroyed 29 of its 71 cabanas.
A press release from the resort pledges that the business place will be "back, bigger, and better than ever on December 20, 2013".
San Pedro The CLEAN UP CAMPAIGN
has been extended for another week (October 18, 2013).
UB Breast Cancer Awareness Day
The University of Belize had their Breast Cancer Awareness day on Wednesday. Paint Belize Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness month.
Oasis of Blessing at Octavia Waight
The Oasis of Blessing is today all day at the Octavia Waight Centre auditorium.
Boxing Entertainment in Cayo
Tonight at the Cayo Welcome Center the Belize Development Council and the SISE Town Council will be having a cultural night with Boxing and entertainment, including Airbender Ashanti Garcia performing.
Issues on Copyright and Related Rights
The Belize Intellectual Property Office (BELIPO), in cooperation with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) is hosting a two-day workshop on "Issues on Copyright and Related Rights".
The workshop is open to all persons who fall under the Copyright Act of Belize, including but not limited to: artists, photographers, architects, computer programmers, musicians, performers, graphic designers, writers, publishers, students, filmmakers, producers, directors, actors, and librarians.
Channel 7
Hundreds of Thousands Embezzled From Southern Regional Hospital, Administrator Suspended
Just last night we aired an update into the ongoing audit of the Southern Regional Hospital - where there have been rumours of substantial misappropriation of public funds. But, after the CEO Peter Allen spoke to us in the morning, later that evening when he was heading up to Belmopan he got a call from the Auditor General's Department. They had made dramatic and disturbing findings. This afternoon via telephone from Belmopan CEO Allen told us what they told him:..
Dr. Peter Allen, CEO - Ministry of Health
"What they found was 3 cheques totaling $7,060 which were drawn from the hospital account which manages funds for NHI deliveries of babies at the hospital. They found 3 cheques totaling $7,060 w which was made out to cash or to the administrator Nasley Sommerville. What is more distressing is that they cannot account for 189 cheques."
"With 3 cheques totaling $7,060 - 189 cheques of course may amount to very significant sums of money and it appears that somebody was running a separate checking system, so that there were multiple cheque books. This may well amount to very significant sums of money. You had mentioned figures in the hundreds of thousands and I think that may well turn out to be true."
83 Year Old Murder Suspect Gets Bail
Bail for murder is extremely rare, but so is an the case of an 83 year old charged for killing his wife.
And so, tonight, 83 year-old Manuel Cucul, a resident of PG, is out on bail for murder after spending several months in prison for allegedly killing his 82 year-old wife, Maria Chen.
Cucul's attorney, Kevin Arthurs, applied to the Supreme Court for bail, and the matter was heard by Justice Troadio Gonzalez today. Arthurs submitted that Cucul was diagnosed with dementia and amnesia. Arthurs told the court that given the rapid deterioration of his client's health, the medical staff at the Kolbe Foundation became concerned that he wouldn't be able to survive under the harsh conditions among the prison population.
Mayor Won't Accept Chang's Request For Extension
Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley gave his Deputy Eric Chang until today to appear for a meeting with him. That deadline came and went without any sign of Chang. Chang did send the mayor an email earlier in the week asking for an extension to October 25th to deal with his ailing grandfather in Taiwan. Via text message, we asked the mayor if this had been granted, and late last night Mayor Bradley sent us a text message saying that, quote, "We are not inclined to grant any extension for his post as deputy and works councilor." End quote.
Today when the deadline for Chang to show up had passed, we asked that mayor if any decision has been taken to move Councilor Chang. He told us, quote, "Not yet, council will meet next week�and then make a decision."
Chang has not returned our requests for an interview. Is he in the country, or isn't he? Well, there are varied reports on that - with multiple phantom sightings. We don't know about any of that, all we can say is he hasn't presented himself to his boss, the Mayor.
Hulse Denies Visa Quota, PM Laments It
So is there a visa quota system for ministers or isn't there? It is a perplexing question - because there are mixed messages coming from Cabinet. On Wednesday, the Minister of Immigration flatly denied any knowledge of any such system. Here are his remarks:..
Daniel Ortiz
"Can you tell us if there any such system?"
Hon. Godwin Hulse
"Absolutely none, I don't know where they got that information from. No minister is allowed to sell visas. Nobody in this country is allowed to sell visas. The process of getting a visa is applying to the Department. When you apply to the Department, there is a fee that you pay. The Chinese I think pays $2,000, Indians pay something else, and other nationals pay another price. You apply there and you get your visa."
Daniel Ortiz
"So you're saying categorically, that this system does not exist."
PUP Cayo NE Hopeful Says UDP Smothering Recall With Intimidation
And as much as Penner has embarrassed and pained the Prime Minister, as party leader, to keep his government together, Barrow has ordered his senior ministers to go and support Penner in Cayo northeast and campaign to block a recall effort. That support was rolled out on Sunday, in time to seriously dampen the PUP's recall petition drive. Landy Habet is the PUP Standard bearer who lost by only 17 votes to Elvin Penner in the 2012 general election - and he is the man who would face him or his successor in a bye election. Today he told us how the effort has been somewhat stalled:..
Orlando "Landy" Habet - PUP Standard bearer
"On Sunday we were organizing a rally but we got some information early that the government people would be there trying to disrupt things to agitate something against it and so just about in the morning we found out that Mr. John Saldivar, the Deputy Prime Minister, the UDPs from San Ignacio - they had a meeting right beside where we were preparing for our activity. What we did was deployed the people out to do a house to house campaign. When we found out that the government was also doing a house to house campaign. but this was an anti-Penner petition campaign. The people are saying that they come in and they say that they came to apologize on behalf of Mr. Penner who is suffering from high blood pressure so he can't be here personally to ask for an apology. That's the campaign."
Man Critical After Iguana Street Shooting
When we left you last night, it was with the news that a man had been shot during the news - and was in a serious condition. Well, 28 year old Shane Vernon survived four shots but is in a critical condition.
Vernon was shot in front of the home of his ex-common-law-wife late yesterday evening. It happened just before 7:00 Iguana Street. The 28 year old had gone to visit his child and was standing outside the gate wife when a gunman came from behind and opened fired. Vernon was shot 5 times to the upper right back, lower right abdomen, upper left back, the neck and to his right hand. We understand that he was not the intended target for last night's shooting. The shooting is believed to have been retaliation for a recent stabbing incident.
Tonight he remains hospitalized in a critical condition.
UB Lecturers In Uproar After Secure Employment Replaced By 1 Year Contracts
Teachers from the University of Belize met with an attorney today to find out about the implications of a new contract system set in place by the Administration since the beginning of the month.
Their concern stems from the fact that they are expected to sign 1 year contracts when many of these lecturers and professors, who have been at the University for over 10 years, believed that they had security of tenure.
7News understands that the 1-year contracts were handed to the entire teaching staff, and they are expected to sign on to these new terms of employment by Saturday, or risk being removed from the payroll. As we've said this comes as a big surprise to the long-standing teachers at UB because their ongoing communication, before this 1-year contract emerged, was that they have security of tenure based on their credentials, and their years of service.
Cabinet Smiles At Stake Bank, MOU Next
A few weeks ago, we reported that the Stake Bank and North Drowned Caye Cruise Tourism projects had gotten full environmental clearance. But, the matter is still before Cabinet - and is pending the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Government. But today CEO in the Ministry of Trade Mike Singh told us that it basically has the executive green light:..
Mike Singh - CEO, Ministry of Trade
"We've been looking very closely at the project. There has been some request to Mr. Feinstein to make some adjustments and I will tell you the particular adjustments have to do with his request to develop Drowned Caye as a commercial island whereby you would have a tax free zone. There is of course a lot of concern by the domestic economy in Belize City that that would take away a lot of the business."
Norwegian Says Mayans Support Harvest Caye, Greg Ch'oc Says Not So Fast
In other Cruise port news, Norwegian Cruise Line says that it has gotten the support of twelve Mayan Villages in the south for the Port to call that they are proposing to build on Harvest Caye.
As we showed you, the project has had its number of opponents who do not believe that mass cruise tourism should be opened up in the south, but according to NCL, 12 Mayan Villages have given public support for the project.
A release from the company says that Mayan Leaders of these 12 villages were in attendance at a meeting on September 15, and they announced their support, urging other villagers who attended to support the project as well. These leaders reportedly explained to the villagers that the NCL development on Harvest Caye will give outlying villages the opportunity to provide fruits, vegetables, arts and craft to tourists without having to leave their homes for markets farther away than the island.
Garbage On Beach Causing San Pedro Headaches
3 Weeks ago, 7News told you about the island of garbage which washed up onto the shorelines of San Pedro and Caye Caulker. Well, 7News has received a complaint that the San Pedro Town Council has not done enough to clean up the beaches, which is still under those mountains of garbage.
The individual claims that locals on San Pedro have been trying to organize themselves to make cleanup efforts but they need help, which hasn't been forthcoming from the Town Council. As a result, we contacted Mayor Daniel Guerrero today who told us that the person making that complaint is being unfair to the Town Council. He said that since this situation took place, his council has been working very hard to try to clean up, but according to Guerrero, for every few days of progress that they make; more garbage just washes up on the beaches.
The Return Of Ramon's
And in better news from San Pedro, Ramon's Village says they're well on their way to recovery, and the management has set a goal to be fully reopened by the end of the year.
They've been hard at work to rebuild the damaged parts of the resort, and in order to promote the reopening, they've started production on a video series called "We Are Ramon's" to showcase far along the resort has come since the fire, which destroyed 29 of its 71 cabanas.
A press release from the resort pledges that the business place will be "back, bigger, and better than ever on December 20, 2013". The video series can be found at the Ramon's Village youtube page.
Trading Information for Trade
Today Belize launched its National Trade Information Network in coordination with the Caribbean Export and Development Agency. It's all about what the trade experts call Market Intelligence. David Gomez of Caribbean Export explained:..
David Gomez
"The good this is for the entire Caribbean region this is then the first launch of any national trade information network across the Cariforum region. When you look at trade portals across the world, the one deficit all of them have is information on the Caribbean. The one challenge you always have is understanding what companies exist where or what types of products and services they are providing and who is doing what."
Mike Singh - CEO, Ministry of Trade
"Ideally it offer the kind of information on productivity, on availability of products, on policies, on value and volume of products that have move and available to be moved so that anybody making a decision on investment for instance let's say you want to invest in grain production and you need to understand what the current productivity of grain, what are the markets, what are the exports and it gives you a good idea whether the investment makes sense or not."
What's In an Egg?
The second Friday in October is set aside for world egg day, and today, for the second year, the poultry association decided to organize a school feeding programme. They did it at Stella Maris where they used 400 eggs to cater 200 egg and bean burritos. We found out more:..
Orlando "Landy" Habet
"This year we partner with BAHA and they came up with the bright idea to lets show people that eggs cannot only be consumed alone but egg is a product that is so versatile that it can be consumed with any other product, we are going to combine it with beans, tortilla, a banana each and also some milk."
Jules Vasquez
"is the consumption of eggs by the Belizean population still robust?"
Orlando "Landy" Habet
"Yes, as a matter of fact in 2003 -2004 the consumption was just a little bit over 110 eggs per person per year. In the last 6-7 years we have increased the consumption now to about 150-160 eggs per person per year."
Belize vs. Guat In Boxing
And eggs are a great source of protein for boxers - and the ones we met today at the Lion's Den boxing camp will need a lot of it. Tomorrow they are facing off against a roster of Guatemalan boxers. It's happening at the Welcome Center in San Ignacio and we went into the Lion's Den to find out if they are hungry for a victory over Guatemala:..
Clinton Tucker - Trainer, Lion's Den
"It's about national pride, the pride of the gym, the pride of the boxers - it's all about pride on a whole."
Alex Neal
"The truth is that you feel a little nervous - I feel a little nervous but after I get into the ring and feel some punches and stuff, the lion in me just starts to get aggressive, hungry because I am always hungry to fight."
Warren Davis
"A little bit nervous, but still strong, ready to go, ready to take on this boxer. Whosoever come in front of me just have to man up and bring their best because I will bring my best also. I've been working out for a long while."
Jules Vasquez
"Can you prepare for an opponent that you don't know?"
A New Basketball Elite League
This weekend the Belize Basketball Federation is set to host a two-day basketball tournament in Orange Walk. 8 teams, including 1 from each district, will compete against each other to find out who is the best of the best among the elite ballers of the country.
Today, President of the BBF stopped by 7News to tell us why you should view it as previews of coming attractions:
Paul Thompson
"The Belize Basketball Federation will be hosting a basketball tournament in Orange Walk Town this Saturday and Sunday. This tournament is for elite players and 8 teams will be participating. Teams from each district as well as San Pedro and Belmopan."
"This tournament is being sponsored by the Area Representative for Orange Walk North and by BTL. This tournament is a preview to the elite league that the Belize Basketball Federation is planning for next year. The best players from each district will be in Orange Walk this weekend vying for champion of this tournament."
Channel 5
ComPol says Penner not under investigation
Former Minister of State Elvin Penner is not the subject of any investigation, administrative or criminal. That was confirmed today by Commissioner of Police Allen Whylie. It's a stunning revelation. [...]
Minister of Immigration admits to corruption in department
The Police are not looking at Penner. What then will they investigate? Perhaps, they will investigate the persistent reports that there is a parallel passport scheme which bypasses the protocol [...]
Visas hustle…Godwin Hulse says it's happening
And then there is the damning revelation of a quota system being operated by U.D.P. ministers. The Prime Minister admits to getting reports of that large scale nationality hustle, and [...]
New measures to clamp down on hanky-panky at Immigration Department
On Thursday's newscast, we showed you the highlights from a press conference which lasted nearly two and a half hours. The head-table was intent on looking to the future, while [...]
News Five goes tracking Wonhong Kim at his Piscine Area address
The nationality certificate obtained by Wonhong Kim, the South Korean fugitive who got Belizean nationality and passport states that Kim resides in Belmopan. There is no house number provided, but [...]
Landy Espat says there is need for a re-registration exercise
The involvement of Elvin Penner in the issuance of nationality certificates and passports has far reaching implications. Earlier today, Landy Espat, a member of the Elections and Boundaries Commission, wrote [...]
Will there be a recall? U.D.P. and P.U.P. operatives on the campaign
At the break of the scandal, the Opposition asked Penner to resign or be recalled. Last weekend, the P.U.P. went into full gear and started the collection of signatures required [...]
Julius Espat says press conference filled with hypocrisy
The two hour and a half press conference offered on Thursday by the Prime Minister and the Minister of Immigration was informative; it brought out information long in circulation that [...]
Opposition says there has been no meeting with Elvin Penner
Since the last email Penner sent to the media in late September, he has remained mum and away from the watchful eyes of the public. The opposition has called for [...]
Elderly P.G. man accused of murdering his wife, out on bail
In other news�.the oldest inmate to be on jail on remand is an eighty-three year old P.G. man charged for killing his wife back in May 2012. But tonight, Manuel [...]
Mechanic found guilty of obtaining property by deception
A Belize City mechanic who reportedly swindled money from two customers, who were also his friends, was before the court today to answer to two counts of obtaining property by [...]
Belize City man critical after Thursday night shooting
Twenty-eight year old Shane Vernon remains in critical condition tonight at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital after being shot in the City on Thursday night. According to police, Vernon, who [...]
VIP joins in the recall of Elvin Penner
The Vision Inspired by the People political party says that Minister of Immigration Godwin Hulse is a disappointment to them. Today that party came out swinging in the wake of [...]
Social Partners will not give any legitimacy to the PAC
The P.U.P. Deputy Leader, Julius Espat is also the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. The opposition has walked away from the scheduled hearings because a proposal to change its [...]
A basketball tournament in Orange Walk this weekend
The Belize Basketball Federation has been engaged in promoting young athletes to eventually make to the big leagues. So this weekend, the B.B.F. is hosting a major event in Orange [...]
Please assist 9 year old Jevaun Freeman
Nine year old Jevaun Freeman from Belize City is afflicted with a rare disease which can’t be treated locally. He was first diagnosed with the condition on September twenty-third and [...]
LOVE FM
Students of Stella Maris Dined For World Egg Day
Yesterday we told you about World Mental Health Day and today we'll tell you about World Egg Day. It is celebrated on the second Friday in the Month of October and Belize has been recognizing the day for the past seven years. As part of the activities the Belize Poultry Association hosted breakfast for the students of the Stella Maris School in Belize City. Orlando Habet is the Manager of the Belize Poultry Association.
ORLANDO HABET
"It is important because we want to create awareness for the conception of eggs. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO has been promoting for several years now the use of eggs also as an ingredient, as a nutrient to combat not only malnutrition but also poverty and determine it a nutritional property. We have been doing our share and because we have partnership with the Federation of Poultry Producers of Central America and with the Poultry Federation of Latin America, they also celebrate World Egg Day and everybody celebrates it on the same day. One of the things we want to do also is that apart from the awareness of egg conception, we want people to understand that the nutritional value of eggs is so superior to many other products that one egg a day does not hurt you in anyway.
Compol Says Penner Is Not Being Investigated by Police
Love news spoke with Commissioner of Police Allen Whylie who confirmed that indeed a criminal investigation is underway however former Minister of State Elvin Penner is not a part of that investigation.
ALLEN WHYLIE
"Police have launched an investigation in respect to the issue of the nationality section pertaining to the certificates that where seen on the TV."
AVA DIAZ SOSA
"So would that then indicate that you're looking at Mr. Saldivar? Are you looking at Mr. Penner? What exactly is the investigation looking at, at this point in time?"
ALLEN WHYLIE
"As I said it's looking at the Nationality section so it would have to be the missing files."
AVA DIAZ SOSA
"As well when he spoke to the media a couple days ago, Mr. Author Saldivar suggested or indicated that there was the search warrant issued and in fact he was being sought. Is that so?"
Prime Minister Wouldn’t Want Recall Mechanism to Succeed in Cayo Northeast
Thursday's press conference with Prime Minister, Dean Barrow and Immigration Minister, Godwin Hulse revealed much more than time permitted us to share. While it was the UDP Government that enacted the Recall Mechanism, Prime Minister Barrow said that he would not like to see the process take effect in this instance, but added that Penner can never again be a member of the UDP Cabinet.
RT. HON. DEAN BARROW
"We have now been able to unlock this Petro Caribe largesse, if you will, which will allow us to drive the infrastructure job creating development agenda in a way that as I said will usher in hitherto unseen, golden age of growth in this country. We believe in the context of that larger picture, we are entitled to go to ask the people of Cayo Northeast to help us preserve our government even if it means thereby they are preserving Penner's seat.
Fundraiser Scheduled To Help Terminally Ill Patients
The Belize Hospice and Palliative Care Foundation dedicates it's time to help terminally ill patients who cannot afford medical expenses. The patients are either affected by cancer, diabetes, mental or other life limiting illnesses. On Saturday the Foundation will host its annual awareness concert at the Memorial Park in Belize City. The event will begin at four in the afternoon and will feature a number of local bands. The Foundation will have food and drinks on sale in an effort to raise funds to keep their work going. According to organizers it is a family affair and everyone is invited to come out and learn more about the important work of the Belize Hospice and Palliative Care Foundation.
Accused Murderer Granted Bail
An elderly man who is charged with the murder of his wife is out on bail. 83-year-old Manuel Cucul of San Marcus Village in the Toledo District is accused of killing his wife in May 2012. Cucul's attorney Kevin Arthurs successfully argued for bail in front of Justice Troadio Gonzalez. Justice Gonzalez granted Cucul bail in the sum of ten thousand dollars or two sureties of five thousand dollars each. Arthurs submitted that his client was diagnosed with dementia and amnesia on June 1, 2012 by a psychiatric nurse. The nurse who assessed him said Cucul is disoriented, repetitious and deluded and that he had impaired mental and physical ability. Arthurs also submitted that his clients physical and mental condition were also deteriorating and questions have arisen as to how long he would be able to survive in the harsh conditions of the prison population.
Father Gets Shot While Visiting His Son
A man was shot five times on Thursday night but is alive after having undergone corrective surgery. 28 year-old Shane Vernon, a messenger at RSV Media Centre had just gone to visit with his son on Iguana Street Extension and was standing in front of the gate when at around six- 45 pm, a gunman who was stalking another man, approached from behind and opened fire. The intended target fled, leaving Vernon right in the path of the bullets. Four of the shots ripped through his upper body and the fifth struck him in the back of the neck. Vernon's brother told us on the basis of anonymity how it unfolded and what the doctor's prognosis is.
Brother of shooting victim
"It was a mistake because he doesn't mess with anybody; he's one of the coolest persons and he didn't' have any problem with anyone but you know what's happening in the streets right now; people just firing bullets like their lost."
Memorandum of Understanding Coming On Stream Soon for Stake Bank Project
Last month it was reported that the Feinstein Group's development plan for North Drowned Caye and Stake Bank received approval by National Environment Appraisal Committee. Well according to Michael Singh of the Cabinet's Sub-Committee on Investment, a memorandum of understanding will soon be signed in regards to the Stake Bank Project.
MICHAEL SINGH
"We've been looking very closely at the project; there have been some requests to Mr. Feinstein to make some adjustments. I will tell you the particular adjustments have to do with his request to develop Drowned Caye as a commercial island, whereby you will have a tax free zone. There is of course a lot of concern, by the domestic economy of Belize City, that that would take away a lot of the business. So we've requested some adjustments that I believe he has agreed to. I haven't gotten a report out of the latest cabinet briefing on it so I don't know exactly where they went to but I do know that he has removed some of the concerning issues and I believe that we should be moving forward to a MOU stage hopefully in the next week or two."
Mayor Says Chang Needs To Return to Belize ASAP
Belize City Deputy Mayor Eric Chang remains away from his desk. Mayor Darrell Bradley had publicly said he had given his deputy a deadline of today to report back to the job, but that did not happen. Mayor Bradley told Love news as far as he is aware Chang remains in Taiwan. He said Chang had requested an extension for his absence. Bradley said that request was denied and Chang needs to return and face the music.
MAYOR DARRELL BRADLEY
"What we have done as a council is that we have taken a decision that I was to write him which I have done and I had required that he comes back into the jurisdiction today. He's not coming to the jurisdiction today. He got the email, he phoned me and we had a very lengthy discussion as it relates to when he is coming back into the country. We are treating this from 2 stand points: (1) there is a very serious issue as it relates to his name being called in the immigration scandal.
Opposition Party Works to Meet Target for Recall Mechanism
This weekend, PUP's Standard Bearer for Cayo North-East Orlando Habet will deploy his full team to once again continue the collection of signatures to trigger the recall mechanism. Habet's aim is to successfully recall Former Minister of State and current Area Representative for that constituency, Elvin Penner. Habet told Love News today that so far about one thousand three hundred signatures have been collected out of the one thousand eight hundred that is needed.
ORLANDO HABET
"What people are concerned about is that if the Government of Mr. Barrow formulated and passed this legislation to give the citizens of this country an opportunity to have a recall of an elected representative, why is it now that when the citizens are taking advantage or utilizing that advantage that has been given to them through this legislation. why is it that the government now comes and enforce, comes out to do an anti-campaign against the very legislation that they passed? So, we are still out there; the government is doing their own job of going against the petition. We still are collecting signatures maybe slower than we did on Saturday because maybe we should have anticipated that they would be out there but I am still confident that we will be able to collect those signatures and then that will test the mechanisms firstly to trigger the recall and then go into the referendum but yes I am confident that if we get to an election I will win my election and they do not have a candidate that will be prepared at this moment but because they can see that comparably my leadership is far beyond and above what Mr. Penner has had. "
Governor General Travels to Grenada
Governor General Sir Colville Young left Belize today for Grenada. The Governor General will be the guest of honour at the October graduation ceremony of the University of the West Indies school of continuing studies. In the absence of the Governor General, Cabinet Secretary Carlos Perdomo will be acting Governor General.