Finally, from the Leader of the Opposition, reporters once again challenged him on his fitness to be the leader of the U.D.P. Reports are that there have been calls from among the party’s leadership and supporters for his removal. Barrow says that is all propaganda created by those who want to replace him as party leader.
Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Leader of the Opposition
“That is propaganda. I reject that completely. I completely hear it, sir. No, you hear that from people that want to be leader. You hear that from people in the United Democratic Party that want to know you don’t you hear that from their supporters and them. The pendulum has swung. Do not do that. That is a propaganda, sir. That is a propaganda narrative. You hear this from people that have been ousted from the party, people that my father people that, and when we don’t do it you call them corpses and you say how do you keep these people around? But then when I do it and it’s reform, it’s not reform. It’s either he the beef with everybody. There are some people that have to go and when those people go ten, they sit around and they pray for the downfall of the party and the bad mouth and they give you all of this misinformation. We are rebuilding. We are rebuilding so I would never tell you that I am Dean Barrow. I would never tell you that I am Manuel Esquivel. I could never tell you that. We are rebuilding. We are in our second leader in three and a half years, and we are rebuilding. We have to convince the people. We, as a collective, there is no one more suited to lead this party than me at this time. Because if they were, if they were, no, but then you could talk to, you could, I showed you, I shared information with you, with some people, some of the people that have been my most outstanding critics, singing my praises because they were on the ground, they were working.”
Get ready Belize City, the new E-buses will finally take to the streets on Monday! Earlier today, the Belize City Council, the United Nations Development Programme, and other government ministries officially launched the E-bus service in the downtown area. The ushering in of this environmentally-friendly mode of transportation aligns with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and comes as a green alternative to public transportation. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
The introduction of electric buses to the local public transportation landscape has been long in the making. It was part of a campaign promise leading up to the second term of the Wagner administration at City Hall. A pair of e-buses eventually came into the country earlier this year, just ahead of the March municipals. Today, they were officially welcomed on the streets of the Old Capital.
Bernard Wagner
Bernard Wagner, Belize City Mayor
“Today, I am so excited being able to see this new transformative effort in the transportation system coming to fruition. That is enough for me. It will be transformative for the residents of the city, that is the key area here, the impact, the positive impact that it will have on our residents.”
Electric buses offer several advantages for both transit agencies and commuters. These vehicles produce zero tailpipe emissions, contributing to better air quality and reducing harmful gas emissions which is critical for a municipality like Belize City that can be overburdened by pollution.
Michel Chebat
Michel Chebat, Minister of Energy
“As you know, we have an obligation to reduce our carbon footprints. We just experienced a major concern with Hurricane Beryl, thank God it didn’t hit Belize. But as you all know, the effects of climate change is really drastic and so these buses are low carbon emission buses, contrary to the ones we have running, and so the expectation is that it will contribute positively towards our environment and quality of air, and low carbon emissions.”
Electric buses are highly efficient and have lower operating costs than diesel buses. Fuel savings are significant when comparing electricity with diesel, making these e-buses an economically viable option.
Taheerah Usher
Taheerah Usher, Project Manager, U.N.D.P.
“Another key milestone includes the development of a cohesive low carbon transport electro-mobility strategy in 2023 which assesses the short to medium term market potential and readiness to rollout EVs in Belize. This draft strategy aims to update the national regulatory framework to support EV uptake, increase the supply of electric vehicles at the national level, develop charging infrastructure and improve knowledge and skills in this new technology.”
E-buses have fewer moving parts compared to diesel buses, which significantly reduces the maintenance costs. This translates to cost savings over the lifespan of the vehicles. Overall, electric buses enhance the commuter experience by providing a greener, quieter, and more cost-effective mode of transportation.
Bernard Wagner
“The ride, the amenities that it has there, a/c, the wi-fi, just having a different feeling. It’s a clean feeling. Compared to where we were, this is significant for Belize City.”
In an urban setting, electric motors operate more quietly than combustion engines, contributing to a quieter environment. EV charging infrastructure attracts regional travelers, benefiting local businesses and generating revenue. The charging depot at the corner of Dean and Regent streets is equipped with two 220-volt chargers that are able to charge both e-buses.
Michel Chebat
“It takes about an hour to an hour and a half. Well that is the idea so that the buses can turn around quickly and go to the respective stops and provide the service, you know, that is what we want. We want an efficient service so that the people of, the residents of Belize City can be confident in this new service.”
The bus service begins on July twenty-second. Isani Cayetano for News Five.
The past few weeks have seen concerns being raised by at least one bus company that has been operating in Belize City for several decades. The operator of that business believes that he is being boxed out of the industry with the advent of the new e-buses and, despite assurances from CitCo, maintains that the company’s bottom line will be negatively affected. Mayor Bernard Wagner told reporters this morning that City Hall cannot be consumed with the issues of one stakeholder.
Bernard Wagner
Bernard Wagner, Belize City Mayor
“We are not looking to push anybody out. It’s about inclusivity, it’s about engaging, but it has to be a situation where you look out for the best interest of your residents. I can’t be concerned about the private sector driven entity. I have to be concerned about sixty to seventy thousand people that live in my city and my city has been calling for years that they want this sort of transformation in the transport system and I’m so glad that we are finally here. It’s a pilot project and I continue to dwell on that it’s a pilot project, let us see what the data shows. You will get the financial model, you will get the operational model, you will get how the entire system works and thereafter, many of the bus operators that are here, that are making this ruckus, could now have in hand the sort of data to now go to the financial institutions. The financial institutions want data, they will not invest or provide financing to any entity if there is not enough data to back the risk.”
The cost efficiency in operating these new electric buses cannot be overstated. According to the Minister of Energy, the vehicles take a little over an hour to fully charge and the cost to CitCo, says Mayor Wagner, is only eighty dollars per bus each day.
Bernard Wagner
Bernard Wagner, Belize City Mayor
“Our buses, it takes about eighty Belize dollars to fully charge and it gives us a span for the entire day. Now compare that to the gas buses, I believe the gas buses, to full up in the morning, would run them about three hundred to four hundred dollars, and by midday they probably need to refill again. The cost savings of e-mobility to any aspiring entrepreneur is significant and so, instead of fighting this sort of new model, bus owners should be embracing it and looking at how it would be in terms of their margin. It will substantially change their margins. And so, when we say three dollars and two dollars for the students and one dollar for the golden citizen, it’s just to ensure that we are able to provide this service in the outset for our residents.”
Reporter
“Are you concerned with their concerns, they feel like their being pushed out.”
Michel Chebat
Michel Chebat, Minister of Energy
“Of course, that is always a concern for everyone but that is not the case. You know, there is room for everybody in this project and what we want is the best possible buses for the residents of Belize City.”
Two policemen, charged for the murder of Orange Walk resident Dyandre Chee in March 2023, have been granted bail of twenty thousand dollars each when they appeared before Justice Derick Sylvester earlier today. Viewers would recall that the shooting death of Chee sparked public outrage in the officer-involved incident. Chee was shot and killed while riding a motorcycle and being pursued by the policemen. Attorney Richard ‘Dickie’ Bradley has been instrumental in the case and gave a synopsis of what took place in court.
Richard ‘Dickie’ Bradley
Richard ‘Dickie’ Bradley, Attorney-at-law
“A little over a year ago killing in Orange Walk Town in which a person, a passenger on a motorcycle, had been shot by police officers and fatally shot, and there were major protests in regards to the matter because they had previous killings by police of persons in Orange Walk under suspect circumstances. But be that as it may, the two police officers, Solomon Cowo and Esmin Flores, were charged for murder four days after that shooting and they, in fact, were given disclosure only about maybe two months ago. And they agreed to proceed to a preliminary inquiry without legal representation. So a preliminary inquiry was held and their matter would normally end up on the list for the September cases, not necessarily for trial because there are many, many more cases before them. But it had concluded on the preliminary inquiry and is now basically heading for the High Court in the Orange Walk jurisdiction. Being police officers, they are a bit familiar with the law, they were able to reach out to the legal aid services where former prosecutor Sherigne Rodriguez, and I think she was a former magistrate, I remember going to San Pedro in front of her, and today her boss, the director of legal services was in court. The matter is this, that today for us attorneys on the defense side, marks a significant step forward, this is a huge development. In the sense that the honorable Justice Derick Sylvester was the judge that the matter of an application for bail for the persons who are accused of murder, he has been hearing this matter. Today is not the first day, this had been before the court for a couple of weeks and he has in fact directed that they make certain submissions, written submissions, this is the course of records in the magistrates court, and today His Lordship brought a very lengthy written decision.”
Today, Doris Grant was due in court once again, but did not make an appearance to stand for her charges. However, being that the police forgot to make a request for her removal from the Belize Central Prison, the case was adjourned. Grant was arraigned on May twentieth, 2024, on fourteen counts of theft, fourteen counts of obtaining property by deception and twelve counts of obtaining money transfer by deception. Allegations are that between the period of January first, 2022, to July 2022, by either, deception by money transfer or obtaining property by deception or through theft, Grant stole over one hundred and twenty-one thousand dollars. No plea was taken from her, and Grant was due back in court on those theft related offenses today. Grant’s attorney, Ronell Gonzalez, was surprised that his client was not brought down and only learned of her absence when he was heading to court this morning on the matter. Grant and her common-law husband, Austin Underwood, were both previously remanded to the Belize Central Prison after being charged with being a member of a gang and were held further under the state of emergency for an additional sixty days.
Today, a man was handed a twenty-year sentence and additional twenty-two year sentence after being convicted for the rape of his stepdaughter and sexual assault on separate occasions. As the sentences are to run concurrently, the sixty-six-year-old retired sergeant of police will spend twenty-two years behind bars. During mitigation, no one spoke on the offender’s behalf. Additional aggravating factors included the young age of the victim and his relation to the child. On that day when he was found guilty, the offender arrived at court an hour late for his verdict and arrived moments before the judge was about to execute a bench warrant for his arrest. The stepfather had been allowed to continue on his bail until the day he was convicted of the crime.
On Thursday, the Association of Protected Areas Management Organizations, APAMO, held a press conference to voice complaints about proposals made by the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Climate Change. On June twenty-fifth, the organization sent a seven-page letter to the ministry voicing these complaints, however, they were met with no response. That is until today. We spoke with C.E.O. Kenrick Williams, who told us that the complaints from APAMO have been heard and that the ministry is working carefully to address them.
Britney Gordon, Reporting
After weeks of going unheard by the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Climate Change, the complaints made by the Association of Protected Areas Management Organizations are being addressed. On Thursday, APAMO held a press conference to reiterate concerns previously outlined in a seven-page letter to the ministry that went unanswered. Today, the CEO Kenrick Williams says they have been heard loud and clear. He explains that the ministry is currently revising strategies to strengthen collaboration and facilitation between the government and comanagers, however, he acknowledges the need for clear communication between the parties at all stages of the process.
Kenrick Williams
Kenrick Williams, CEO, Ministry Sustainable Development & Climate change
“So we came with initial consultations, initial engagement to say to the pro co-managers, this is what government is looking at. Let’s give us some initial feedback. No, I recognize that. Maybe the approach, maybe the timeline, the notification. Definitely some guts in the communication from our side and we acknowledge that. And so we are going to continue to make sure that as we go through this process is really just a start. This is not the final draft and say, here you go, give me your input, what part you fit in on this. This is the first part. This is what we are contemplating as a government to address all of those things. Coordination, the collaboration, ensuring that we get the financial investment, ensuring that government is able to meet its part of the bargain. And ensure that there is transparency and accountability on all parts of the partnership.”
Among the complaints voiced were difficulties in accessing funding and resources from the government. Eli Miller, Managing Director of Monkey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, highlighted how this change affected fire relief efforts earlier this year.
Eli Miller
Eli Miller, Managing Director, Monkey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
“We had a lot of fires this year, and I will say it’s gonna happen again. We’re gonna have the consistent hotter, drier conditions coming. And as we’ve discussed with some of the ministers and the coordinator for Nemo. The highest, the best capacity for fire suppression and fire management believes rests with our co-management entities. They have rangers who deal with fire on an annual basis. And that’s where the, that’s where the knowledge lies. That’s how we’re gonna be able, those people are gonna be able to transcribe that knowledge to the communities who, those who don’t already have it, and we can be a better country for it. We can manage our fire situation better. And that doesn’t happen without some kind of support from government and some leadership as well.”
According to the ministry, PACT has since provided four hundred and sixty-one thousand dollars in emergency support for fire management. However, APAMO noted the difficulties in accessing grants over the past two years. Williams says that PACT and the ministry are working towards a solution.
Kenrick Williams
“PACT itself and its partners has Conservation Services. Has been trying to see how we are targeted in investment, so we’ve created a conservation investment program. That has been. We’ve been working with the protected areas co managers over the last two years to try to ensure that again. The point is that we have a little bit of money. So we have to make sure that we have the type of impact that we want to create from those investments. So we’re changing the way how we do that. That indeed has been taking some time. We’ve been working closely with the we’ve been working closely with our co managers, we’ve been working closely with the government partners, but that has largely been slow. The board recently took a decision that we need to fast track that process, and we’re going to be providing about a million dollars in bridge financing in the next two weeks or so in order to get some investments on the ground.”
Williams also maintains that the intention of the changes is not to micromanage the work of the co-managers, but rather improve the relationship between parties involved.
Kenrick Williams
“There are responsibilities on both parts. Government as a regulatory agency have to make sure that there’s accountability, there’s transparency, there’s reporting. Right now that is a framework that is missing, right? We are not reporting against funds collected. We are not I cannot be able to go out and say or protected areas report against this or leverage this amount of money to the system.I know one figure put out was about 16 million, but there’s no clear report. We, government and co-managers can’t, have not been able to come together and say. This is a type of impact we’re having on the ground collectively and nationally. The intent, therefore, is not to micromanage, it’s to improve how we do things.”
A team of twenty-three Peace Corps Belize volunteers were sworn in today to serve as youth development volunteers with the National Sports Council. The group recently completed several weeks of rigorous training in Belize to better understand the country’s needs and how best they can contribute. Today, that group officially began their twenty-four months of service to Belize under a program called Youths Empowered by Sports, or the YES Project. A swearing-in ceremony was held in Belmopan where we heard from Marvin Ottley, the Deputy Director of the National Sports Council and Nadine Rogers, the Country Director for Peace Corps Belize.
Marvin Ottley
Marvin Ottley, Deputy Director, National Sports Council
“We know they hit the ground running right away. But they have been training for a period of time to familiarize themselves with what Belize has to offer. What we at the national sports council has to offer. So from the chairman, director, minister, all our staff at the National Sports Council we welcome the new cohort and we expect to have a wonderful working relationship.”
Nadine Rogers
Nadine Rogers, Country Director, Peace Corps Belize
“The YES Project, Youths Empowered by Sports. It is now over a year old. Some of the volunteers I swore in back in November, the YES 1 cohort, are actually here in the room. I am so proud of the work they have been doing in partnership with the National Sports Council, school principals, community partners and I am thinking about the support they offered to the primary school soccer tournament in Orange Walk a few weeks ago. My special words to you are these, first be focused. This work is rewarding and real. Be kind, empathetic, be yourself, your best self, be present. Community can be changed forever by your contribution. For example, when a volunteer and a principal started and N.G.O. to address the impacts of trauma and violence of youths in their community. Or, when a staff member named Anthony Williams served for thirty-six years and forever changed the lives of volunteers, community and co-workers.”
Kady Miller
Kady Miller, Peace Corp Volunteer
“My name dah Kady. I dah wah Peace Corp Volunteer. Like Bella mih seh, we proud fih be yah. We proud ah we family and new friends. I the yah fih seh thank you for all the lesson all ah unu mih teach we.”
A single mother of two, Heidi Rivas, received the keys to a brand new, fully furnished, home today in Belize City. The house was constructed and furnished through a partnership with God Cares Outreach and the Young Black Leaders Alliance from the United States. It comes as a gift to Rivas and her two sons, who have been sharing space with her mother. She is also being equipped with the necessary tools to start her own business to financially empower her family. News Five’s Paul Lopez reports.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
Earlier today, Belize City resident Heidi Rivas received the keys to her brand new fully furnished home on Antelope Street extension. God Cares Outreach in Belize collaborated with the Young Black Leaders Alliance from the United States to bring this project to life.
Derrick Pitts
Derrick Pitts, Founder, God Cares Outreach
“As an organization, one of our desires is to see how we can help single mothers in our community. In every community that we work in we work with the local church, and we have a strategy which is to reach, connect, impact.”
Derrick Pitts, the Founder of God Cares Outreach, explained that Rivas is very involved in the local church within her community. He told us that she has been volunteering her time over the last six years to feed children in impoverished communities. Rivas did not own a house and was living with her mom, until today.
Derrick Pitts
“Miss Heidi today believes that she is just receiving a house, but little does she know that it is a fully furnished house. Everything is in there. So, it is a turnkey, I can sleep in my bed kind of thing. We purchased this property, and our plan is to put at least two or three of the houses on this property. And to build the house with furnishing and everything is like sixty thousand dollars.”
The amazement on Heidi Rivas’s face was priceless when she opened the door to her new home and found that that it was fully furnished. She now has a living room area, a kitchen, an indoor bathroom and two bedrooms. The master bedroom is hers. It has been equipped with a sewing machine that she will use to generate income to pay her utility bills. Her two sons now have their own room with a bunk bed.
Heidi Rivas
Heidi Rivas, New Homeowner
“Me and my family will never be the same because of you guys love and continues support. Home is a place blessed and where you and your family can be secure and have all you need, share your sadness and happiness, where you can help each other as a family. And, I will always remember the kindness and support that made this opportunity possible.”
We also heard from a couple of the student ambassadors from the Young Black Leaders Alliance that have been at the site working to build and furnish Rivas’ new home.
Eryn Glover
Eryn Glover, Student Ambassador, Y.L.B.A.
“The Young Black Leadership Alliance is basically an organization in the U.S. that targets highschoolers into college students and building them as leaders, helping us to get scholarships to university, helping us to become service leaders like today, helping us to help others. So we actually had the responsibility as leaders to fundraise. It is actually a really good skill they teach us, how to fundraise and how to ask people in the community around us, hey would you mind helping us to help others. So we went through a fundraising process for a few months, hit our goals, then we were able to come out here and serve.”
Jevarrie Carlton
Jevarrie Carlton, Student College Ambassador, Y.B.L.A.
“This is my second time serving here with the Young Black Leadership Alliance. The first time was a little bit different for me. That was the first time I actually left my home country to serve in another country. This time was more personal to me because of where I come from and how fortunate I would have been to receive something similar and if not something great. So just being here at this moment and being able to serve others at this point in my life is just amazing and I would not trade this experience for anything.”
This is the second project that God Cares Outreach and the Young Black Leaders Alliance have collaborated to complete.
Derrick Pitts
“It is also adding dignity but understanding the work, you got to get some skin in the game. So, Ms. Heidi had to put in some sweat. So, she and the boys came and worked on the house, preparing the property. So, she is responsible for her own utilities. Even with that we are providing a business package so that she can make money. She loves to sew so we are teaching her. We got a brand-new sewing machine so that she can work around the church and that kind of stuff.”
