|
Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 84,400
|
OP
|
The June 16th, 2013 issue of The Capital Weekly is online HERE
This Week's Stories:
- PM Barrow: "Bring it On!"
Restoring Honour to our National Flag!:
The announcement
first came in a
brief Press Release
on Monday June
10, which read,
"The Ministry of Finance announces
that the Management
Services Agreement between
the Government of Belize and
Belize International Services
Limited, to manage the International
Business Companies
Registry (IBC) and the International
Merchant Marine Registry
of Belize (IMMARBE) comes
to an end, today, 10 June 2013.
Accordingly, the Government
of Belize will assume control of
the two Registries with effect
from tomorrow, 11 June 2013."
The release promised that
the Prime Minister would give
a full briefing on the matter on
Wednesday, June 12; and he did.
At his Press Conference,
the Prime Minister recounted
that a master agreement was
first signed on June 11, 1993, only
days before the June 30th snap
elections called by then Prime
Minister George Price; a ten year
agreement wih Belize International
Services Limited which
managed IMMARBE and the IBC
Registry with the option to renew
for another ten years. When
that ten years was about to expire
in 2003, the Government's legal
Counsel, Mr. Gian Ghandi, advised
in writing to BISL that because
of a fundamental change
of circumstances, they could
no longer exercise the option
to renew for another ten years.
- "The More Things Change...":
Delroy Cuthkelvin
Chairman, Editorial Board. In our edition
of last
week, in an
article titled,
"The Case
of the Crawl Caye Project
- a Lesson in Transparency,
Thoroughness
and Thoughtfulness",
we had just reiterated
the stark difference between
the Government
of Prime Minister Dean
Barrow and the administration
that preceded
it, led by former Prime
Minister Said Musa, with
regards to their respective
modus operandi in
entering agreements
and undertakings that
have far-reaching implications
for the Nation
and its People.
We had just recounted
the fact that,
in contrast to the open,
cautious and methodical
manner in which the
Barrow Administration
handled such matters,
the Musa Administration
was one that, besides
being hasty and reckless,
was characterized
by serial style secrecy.
As if we needed
one more reminder
of this, news broke this
week of yet another secret
agreement signed by the same two who endorsed
the infamous Accommodation
Agreement, Musa
and his former Attorney
General, Francis Fonseca.
This one was for the purported
'extension of an
extension' of a contract for
a company called Belize
International Services to
manage the International
Companies Registry (IBC)
and the International
Merchant Marine Registry
of Belize (IMMARBE).
- Chile Donates Computers:
The Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, through a donation
from the Embassy of Chile,
presented Six (6) laptop
computers to Our Lady of
Guadalupe High School in
Belmopan, on Wednesday,
June 12, 2013 at 12:00pm.
The Government of
Chile is donating computers
to one high school in every
CARICOM country as a symbol of its commitment
to assisting CARICOM
countries in education.
The Chilean Government
has always provided support to
Belize through the provision
of specialized training courses
for officials in areas such as
diplomacy, cooperation and
language training, and provides
scholarships for higher studies.
His Excellency Renato Sepulveda Nedel,
the Ambassador of Chile
to Belize with residence in
San Salvador was on hand to
present the Laptops on behalf
of the Chilean Government.
Receiving them on behalf of
Our Lady of Guadeloupe High School was the institution's
Principal, Mrs. Barrette Belisle.
- Support Our National Football Selection::
FFB Official Telethon, Saturday June 15, 2013, MCC Tennis Court, Newtown Barracks, Belize City
- Exciting Softball in Cayo District: Ismael 'Miley' Garcia Competition in Progress:
In the Cayo District,
there's an exciting Softball
Competition that is in
progress, and, as of this
week, we're bringing you
regular updates on it. The
Competition is sponsored by
UDP Cayo South Caretaker,
Ismael 'Miley' Garcia.
This past weekend,
Camalote United, Roaring
Creek Grace Kennedy and
Esperanza Wolverines were
all victorious in games
played at the Joan Garbutt
Stadium in Esperanza, on
Sunday afternoon to be exact.
The first game featured
Camalote's star pitcher,
Francine Salazar, who earned
a 15-0 shutout victory over the
Las Flores Shooting Stars in
three innings, as the mercy rule
was applied. She struck out 6
batters in the process. In that
game, the Las Flores Shooting Stars committed 5 errors and
stranded 2 runners on base.
- Speaking Truth Even When We'd Rather Not:
By Zelda Hill. Belizeans, in general,
were once
thought to have
been a non-confrontational,
complacent
and cowardly species.
That notion has
been overruled as individuals
and groups all over Belize
are openly demanding
better quality of life, good
governance of our wealth,
equity of access and answers
from our stewards.
Those who prefer to accept
their plight or to not
"rock the boat" may do so
out of fear or hopelessness,
or perhaps the matter that
would cause them to break
their composure has not yet
raised its head.
For the Church in
Belize that time has arrived.
Truth, which we value and
honor, is under attack! We
must rise to its defense
even in a time when it may
seem inconvenient to do so
and even when we'd prefer
to be silent.
Those who prefer to
accept their plight or to not
"rock the boat" may do so
out of fear or hopelessness,
or perhaps the matter that
would cause them to break
their composure has not
yet raised its head. For the
Church in Belize that time
has arrived and the truth,
which we value and honor,
is under attack. We must
rise to its defense even in
a time when it may seem
inconvenient to do so and
even when we'd prefer to be
silent.
- Elections and Boundaries Department: Results of Village Council Elections:
- UB Graduation Coming UP:
Students who have
successfully completed their
course of study at the University
of Belize will receive their
diplomas at the Associate,
Bachelor, Certificate and
Diploma levels on Saturday
June 15, at the University's
Seventeenth Commencement
Exercises, Central Campus,
Belmopan. The ceremony
will commence at 10 a.m.
Of the total number of
471 graduates, 298 are females
(63.3%) and 173 (36.7%) are males.
The largest number of
graduates are from the Faculty of
Management & Social Sciences
(FMSS) totalling 153, followed
by the Faculty of Education
and Arts (FEA) with a total of
133, the Faculty of Science and
Technology (FST) with 132,
and the Faculty of Nursing,
Allied Health & Social Work
(FNAHSW) with a total of 53.
- Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology,
and Public Utilities Responds to Oceana:
The Ministry of Energy,
Science and Technology and
Public Utilities notes with regret
a recent press release by Oceana
in which it persists in putting its
spin on the judgment delivered
on April 16th, 2013 by Justice Legall
concerning certain oil exploration
contracts awarded by the
previous government. In that
judgment, His Lordship made
certain declarations against the
Ministry but not against the oil
companies. Most importantly,
the Judge specifically refused to
quash the oil exploration contracts.
The legal consequences
that follow from what the Judge
ordered as well as what he refused
to order are purely a legal
issue. For that reason, the Ministry
has obtained and has acted
upon legal advice from one
of the nation's most respected
attorneys at law , which states
in the clearest possible terms
that the effect of the Judge's refusal
to quash or terminate the
contracts is to leave them fully
enforceable by the oil companies.
That advice emphasized
that no order or judgment was
made against any oil company,
none of which was even a party
in the court case. This point was
fully made by the Ministry in its
written and oral arguments to
the Honourable Chief Justice on
its recent application to stay the
effect of Justice Legall's judgment.
Consistent with the legal
advice received, the Ministry is
obliged to treat the contracts as
binding and enforceable against
the country of Belize by the oil
companies.
- Crawl Caye Off Limits: Cruise Tourism NOT Off the Table :
We doubt many
of you caught
it, but last week
in our story
titled, "The Case of the Crawl
Caye Project - a Lesson in Transparency,
Thoughtfulness and
Thoroughness", we mistakenly reproduced
a photograph of Hunting
Caye instead of Crawl Caye.
For that we sincerely
apologize, although we will hasten
to point out that the error on
our part did not minimize in any
way the principal point of our story,
which is that the current government,
unlike the one that preceded
it, is an administration that
thoughtfully and thoroughly considers
pertinent issues and concerns
before entering into agreements
and undertakings that have
far-reaching implications for the
Nation and its People, and that
it invariably conducts the entire
process in a transparent manner.
And while we admittedly
erred, we should be readily
excused, we contend, for having
mistakenly brought you that
splendid aerial view of Hunting
Caye, also in Southern Belize,
which is no less precious
an island than Crawl Caye.
Furthermore, in following
up this week on the substance
of the story, we get the
opportunity to print for you, not
one, but two photographs of the
real Crawl Caye, hoping that in
so doing, we make it up to you.
- Drill & Discipline Course Completed at National Police Training Academy:
Graduation ceremonies
were held this
past Friday, June 7,
for close to Twenty
Police Officers who completed
a two-week squad drill course
conducted at the Police Training
Academy in Belmopan.
The course was for
non-commissioned officers, corporals
and sergeants who are attached
to the various formations
and sub-formations around the
country; and its purpose was
to have the participating Police
Officers sharpen up their
drill-skills, something which
keynote speaker at the Ceremony,
Acting Director of Training,
Senior Superintendent Chester
Williams reminded them is an
integral part of their discipline
as members of one of the nation's
leading security forces.
Williams noted that everywhere
in World, disciplined
forces must engage in such drills,
which though they vary in specifics
from country to country, have
the same basic objective, mainly
that of instilling discipline in
the individuals who are part of
a uniformed and coordinated
team that operates as a single
unit in executing its functions.
- One Week to Go: UDP Extends Lead in Village Council Elections:
This past week, the
UDP again scored overwhelming
victories nationwide in
the Village Council Elections,
which are nearing completion.
In Corozal, the UDP
swept all 7 seats in Libertad, Caledonia
and Paraiso, and won five
seats including the chairmanship,
in Patchakan, leaving the
PUP with only 2 councillors.
In Orange Walk, Deputy
Prime Minister and Orange
Walk North Area Representative,
Hon. Gaspar Vega won
the last two of the villages in his
constituency, San Jose and San
Luis, completing a 9 out of 9
sweep over his PUP opponents.
The UDP also won August
Pine Ridge in Orange South.
In Cayo Central, Hon.
Rene Montero is also 8 out of
8 to date, with only one village
to go. This past week, he
took San Antonio, where the
UDP slated was unchallenged.
- Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat Bounce Back in
Game 4 Against Spurs to Tie the Series:
LeBron James was going
to deliver on his Game
4 guarantee, no question
about it. He's simply too talented
and too battle-tested
to be held down this long.
But Game 4 was more
than just redemption for
James. It was Dwyane Wade
living up to his reputation and
Chris Bosh living up to the
hype. It was Miami's celebrated
Big Three, maligned after
their no-show performance in
Game 3, wresting back control
of the NBA Finals with a collaborative
effort for the ages.
"It was on our shoulders,
honestly," James said. "When all
of us are clicking at the same
time we're very tough to beat."
- Spelling Bee in Belmopan:
The Champion Comes from the South:
Following two rounds
of eliminations countrywide, 12
finalists participated in the exciting
grand finale of the 2013
Coca-Cola National Spelling.
The competition, which began
in February with the participation
of 271 primary schools, culminated
on June 7 at the UB Sports and
Recreation Center in Belmopan.
A tie for the first and second
place spots emerged at the
end of the first eliminating reserve
list round; the contest rules then
allowed for the spell-off for third
place to proceed, and it was Toledo's Hilda Saki of St. Benedict
R.C. that emerged in the Fourth
Round as the third place winner
with the spelling of the words "fylfot"
and "nappe." She received
a $1,500 educational prize from
Bowen & Bowen Ltd., parent company
of Coca-Cola in Belize, and a
tuition and book grant for one year
from the Ministry of Education.
- Belmopan Kids and Youth Cup 2013:
Playoff Results for Weekend - June 1 & 2
|
|
|