Brianna Bennett - Greater Belize Media

Faber Fights Back: Says NPC Has No Power to Expel or Reinstate

Patrick Faber isn’t backing down. He’s pushing back hard, saying the NPC has no authority to vote on reinstating him, or anyone else, for that matter. According to Faber, the High Court already ruled that those expulsions were illegal in the first place. And when it comes to removing him from the party? Faber says the NPC can’t just pass a resolution and call it a day. He insists that’s not how it works under the U.D.P’s own constitution.

Patrick Faber, Former Area Representative, Collet

“This party is democratic. If they want to bring a charge against me, to say I am disruptive or I have breached the constitution of the party, I have no problem with that. Do it the proper way. Bring the charge, take it to the central executive and say Faber has to go and then send it to the ethic committee. The ethic committee will come in and say Faber why did you do this and give us your answer. Then the ethic committee will say, Faber you know what, you really out of order, you got to go. Here is your expulsion or suspension or a hundred dollars fine or a letter of reprimand. Those are the four outcomes from the ethics committee. Again, you will understand the court was clear there was no expulsion. So they cannot vote to reinstate me. I am a member of the party. What they may do is decide that they want me expelled and they have to go through the process, which is to bring a charge through the central executive committee. I the tell them how to do it.”

Faber Questions Legitimacy of Espat and Almendarez Representation

All eyes are on the internal dynamics of the United Democratic Party as Senator Patrick Faber raises a new concern: how will the party manage future NPC meetings when some constituencies now have two caretakers? Take Belize Rural South, for instance, both Beverly Williams and David Almendarez are holding the fort until a convention is called. And in Albert, while Opposition Leader Tracy Panton is the sitting area rep, there’s still the question: will Jose UC Espat continue as caretaker there?

Patrick Faber, Former Area Representative, Collet

“Ok, so they will reinstate everybody. What will happen in the subsequent NPC. So you will have Mr. Uk and the honorable Panton in the meeting? You will have Ms. Williams and crazy man Almendarez in the meeting? The convention is a stretch to take this party under Shyne Barrow and Michael Peyrefitte a little bit longer to October. The constitution of our party says the NPC is always active. So if you have some standard bearers that did not get appointed back as caretaker, there still is an NPC because each constituency has a chair and secretary. They change up the chair and secretary. They are preparing the party for Tracy Panton they say, but yet Tracy Panton cannot give her input on what is right for the party in terms of the list. All we are asking is for them to do what they ought to do by the constitution of the party. So show me where the eleven people who supported Tracy was expelled. Better yet show me where the process that was endorsed by the constituencies. I sure Belize Rural Central never endorse Almendarez. Not a single soul from the UDP Belize Rural Central endorse Almendarez. They never asked, they never bring it to NPC. So how Almendarez become a candidate. Then he must come to the meeting and vote, but Ms. Bev, who was duly put there, cannot come and vote.”

Moses Barrow: “Patrick Faber is the Sickness in the UDP”

Former Mesopotamia Area Representative Moses ‘Shyne’ Barrow is standing firm, insisting he is the duly elected leader of the party, even as he faces a challenge from Tracy Panton. On Saturday, Shyne threw his full support behind the motion to remove Patrick Faber, going as far as to say that Faber is the real ‘sickness’ plaguing the U.D.P. Strong words from a man fighting to hold onto the reins of a deeply divided party.

Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Former Area Representative, Mesopotamia

“We didn’t anyone to physically assault the colleague.”

Paul Lopez

“How regrettable is this knowing that this does not bode well for the unity you all are attempting to build?”

Moses “Shyne” Barrow

“That is Patrick Faber. It is what he has always been about. I just hope that whoever succeeds me as leader does not take any direction from him. He has been prone to self-destruction. He was at the mountain top and he threw himself from the mountain top. He is definitely not someone to take advice from.”

Paul Lopez

“Any attempt to remove Patrick Faber permanently will definitely not sit well with Ms. Panton and her team. So this is a continued slippery slope we are going down.”

Moses “Shyne” Barrow

“Who came to the meeting today? You ever see me or any of the colleagues that are official leaders go to Euphrates or involve ourselves in anything Ms. Panton is doing. But it is quite unfortunate, there must be consequences. It cant be that the party move forward with these types of tumors. We need to treat ourselves and it is evident that after today he is the main sickness in the UDP.”

Police Decline UDP Request to Remove Faber

As we reported earlier, the United Democratic Party made a bold move over the weekend, calling on police to remove Patrick Faber from Saturday’s meeting. But in a surprising twist, law enforcement didn’t budge. Today in Belmopan, reporters caught up with the Commissioner of Police, Doctor Richard Rosado, to find out why the police chose to stay out of it.

Dr. Richard Rosado, Commissioner of Police

“I want to echo that the police department will not intervene in the domestic affair of any political party. If an incident occur that requires the police to intervene if a crime has occurred, it will be thoroughly investigated and of there is evidential material to support the charges, charges will be load.”

Cow Pen Man Killed in Bicycle Dispute

A tragic and shocking incident out of Cow Pen Village; police say a man was killed over something as simple as a bicycle. The victim, Carlos Garvin, was found lifeless in front of a liquor store on Friday night, the result of a fatal chop wound to the upper body. Authorities say the attacker was armed with a machete. So, what led to this deadly confrontation? Here’s what police know so far.

Dr. Richard Rosado, Commissioner of Police

“On July twelfth about seven twenty-eight p.m. based on information received police discovered the lifeless body of Carlos Garvin near a local liquor establishment in the said village. The victim sustained fatal chop wounds in the upper body. Preliminary investigation revealed that the attack may have been motivated over a bicycle. Police subsequently apprehended the suspect and charges will be laid today.”

Reporter

“Any alcohol involved?”

Dr. Richard Rosado

“We have not ascertained that as yet but we do know the incident happened near a local liquor establishment.”

American Arrested for Shipping Guns and Ammunition into Belize

A major bust at the northern border has landed a U.S. national with Belizean roots in serious trouble. Authorities say the man was arrested after a shipment inspection on Friday uncovered three firearms, multiple magazines, and over a thousand rounds of ammunition. According to Commissioner of Police, Doctor Richard Rosado, the suspect had already arrived in Belize through the PGIA before the shipment was flagged. Tonight, we take a closer look at what led to this arrest and what charges the individual could be facing.

Dr. Richard Rosado, Commissioner of Police

“On the twenty seventh of June during a routine custom inspection at the northern border led to the discovery of an undeclared dutiable in a shipment. Upon further examination on July eleventh, in the presence of the owner, custom officers subsequently discovered three firearms, several magazines and approximately one thousand, three hundred rounds of ammunition. This subsequently led to the arrest of Darnane Garcia for illicit trafficking of firearms and ammunition. The individual that was detained is a U.S. national but his parents are Belizean. From our information he was returning home. And, he arrived in Belize through the PGIA on July eleventh and subsequently went to collect his items at the northern border which was shipped before his arrival in Belize.”

Reporter

“He is a U.S. armed veteran I believe?”

Dr. Richard Rosado

“We have not confirmed that as yet, but I highly doubt it.”

Police Bust 70-Year-Old With 133 Pounds of High-grade Cannabis

A routine checkpoint stop in northern Belize turned into a major drug bust over the weekend. Police say they discovered more than 133 pounds of high-grade cannabis stashed in the trunk of an SUV. The driver? Seventy-year-old Eric Duhaney, who’s now facing serious charges for possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply. Commissioner of Police, Doctor Richard Rosado, shared more details about the bust and how it all unfolded.

Dr. Richard Rosado, Commissioner of Police

“On the twelfth of July about nine p.m. at the northern border checkpoint, police responded to a custom request where vehicle driven at the time by seventy-year-old Eric Duhaney was search which led to the discovery of a hundred and thirty-three pounds of high grade cannabis. Duhaney was subsequently detained and charged for possession of control drugs with intent to supplier to another.”

Reporter

“Is he a known peddler?”

Dr. Richard Rosado

“Not to my knowledge.”

Police Report Crime Drop, Except Up North

Today, top brass from across the country gathered in Belmopan for the Belize Police Department’s second-quarter COMPSTAT meeting. Held at the National Police Training Academy, the session brought together senior commanders to crunch the numbers, track crime trends, and fine-tune strategies to tackle violence and improve public safety. According to Minister of Home Affairs Kareem Musa, there’s good news; major crimes are down compared to this time last year. But not everywhere. The northern region saw a slight uptick, prompting fresh discussions on how to respond.

Kareem Musa, Minister of Home Affairs & New Growth Industries

“COMPSTAT also affords us the opportunity to strategize most importantly based on the crime trends that we are seeing in particular areas obviously with a greater focus on the utilization of innovation and technology the allocation of our resources, patrols in hotspots in the country especially in Belize city right now that we are seeing a spike in gang violence over the last two or three weeks and so that was in essence the purpose of the COMPSTAT this morning in terms of the murder statistics for this very same period. In certain situations retaliation can be expected and so that is one of those scenarios that can definitely result in an optic in the crime statistics increasing gang tensions increasing violence and retaliation because it only takes one murder to result in three four five six. We do have the influence of a cartel so to speak narcotraffickers influencing crime in that northern region which is why government has made it a point to focus our resources in that northern area each and every year and it is expected toward the later part of this year that we have a significant increase in the amount of resources dedicated specifically to the northern region because as you know each year for the last three years the government has allocated between eight hundred thousand to a million dollars but we see where there is greater need for resources there because of the type of networking that the narcotraffickers are having with the Belizean players on the Belizean side.”

Top Cop Pushes Unity to Tackle Crime

Commissioner of Police Doctor Richard Rosado is putting relationships at the heart of crime-fighting. At today’s COMPSTAT meeting, he emphasized the need for stronger bonds, not just within the police force, but with the communities they serve. Doctor Rosado says teamwork and collective decision-making among commanders are key to transforming how the department tackles crime. But he also acknowledged a major challenge: investigating gang-related violence, where victims and suspects often come from the same tight-knit neighborhoods, making witnesses hesitant to speak out.

Dr. Richard Rosado, Commissioner of Police

“Today we had the opportunity indeed to review our achievement discuss our challenges and find new opportunities on how we can address the growing or evolving stress of crime we have indeed seen a downward trend in major crimes and for the first six months murder is down by twenty nine percent when compared to the same period last year. First of all as a commissioner of the police my first few months have focused on establishing a vision of transparency, accountability, a stakeholder centric approach I believe my leadership style has been transformational yet inclusive racing collective input adapted decision making and engagement and I think our commanders now feel more empowered more motivate in moving the department forward to address the many challenges we face in the department.”

UB Union Plans to get Subvention by any Means Necessary

Tensions are heating up between the University of Belize and the Government, and it all comes down to a ten-million-dollar promise that’s been left hanging for nearly a decade. The UB Faculty and Staff Union says they’ve waited long enough, and now, they’re drawing the line. At a recent NTUCB solidarity rally, UBFSU President Julianne Pasos didn’t mince words, she says the university is underfunded, staff morale is slipping, and the union is ready to do whatever it takes to get that long-overdue subvention delivered.

Julianne Pasos, President, UB Faculty & Staff Union

“Our faculty and staff are demoralized at this point, and they do want to. The nine percent is ten years coming. In 2015 when we got our five percent, I just got an email that reminded me that at that point we were negotiating for fourteen percent and we only got five and we did not get the additional nine percent. So this is long in the making, so our faculty and staff are really going to do whatever it takes to get it. And so they, I just have to say, be prepared for whatever.”

Reporter

“Even if that means pushing school back>”

Julianne Pasos

“I don’t know. I can’t say, you know, and honestly, at the cabinet meeting on Teusday, we plan to be out there for that meeting on, and I invite the students to come and join us because doesn’t only impacted faculty and staff, but it also impacted students. So I invite the students to come join us and the public come on. It affects all of us there. What affects our national university affects the entire country of Belize. At this this point, I believe you’re aware of the last stand, the issuing that came out. We are calling on a meeting for requesting a meeting with the Minister of Education and the Minister of Finance to discuss the subvention for the university. That meeting has been postponed to hopefully next week after the meeting with Cabinet. We have been informed the issue of the university subvention will be tabled on the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. So hopefully we make some headway after that.”