2024 - Channel 5 Belize

No GST, ‘Whether by Cash or Credit/Debit Card’

As the first GST-free weekend kicks off, shoppers are already reporting mixed experiences. Sherlet Rose Neal, a local consumer, shared a video on Facebook sharing the experience she encountered while grocery shopping today.

According to Neal, she was informed by a Chinese store that the GST relief would not apply to credit or debit card transactions. Neal said that the store’s reason was, “”Because they have to pay the bank 3%.”

In response to the video, the Government of Belize Press Office clarified that the GST exemption applies to all purchases made during the designated four days, regardless of payment method. “Shoppers are informed that on the 4 days designated as GST-Free days, ALL immediate retail purchases, whether by cash or credit/debit card, carry no GST,” the office stated.

Shoppers are advised to carefully check their receipts to ensure they are receiving the GST relief.

GST Christmas Waiver: Here’s How It Works for Shoppers and Businesses

Two Men Charged with Cousins’ Murder

Two men have been charged with the murder of cousins Marvin Cante and Juan Raymundo. They are Karl Lindbergh Lindo, 21, of Hattieville, and Christopher Alexander Smith, 21, of Belize City.

The remains of the cousins were found on December 11th in a shallow grave off Dollar Bank Road in Hattieville.
The cousins went missing in late November.

Concerns intensified when Raymundo did not reply to messages from his common-law wife. By the next day, they were reported missing to the authorities. Raymundo’s vehicle was found abandoned on November 28th, near mile 24 on the George Price Highway, with the engine still running.

Dr. Eck Raffle is Among 41 Approved Raffle Licenses for 2024

The Lotteries Committee announced the approval of 41 individuals and organisations to conduct raffles in 2024. According to the Lotteries Committee, anyone wishing to host raffles with prizes totalling at least $500 must apply for a license.

The Lotteries Committee said in its statement that the list of approved raffle organisers can be accessed in its official page.

One of the approved raffles is being held to support Dr. Cecelio Eck’s cancer treatment. Dr. Eck, who was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in July, is receiving treatment outside of Belize. A raffle, running from November to January 2025, is raising funds for his medical expenses. Tickets are priced at $100 and can be purchased online through OneLink until January 6, 2025.

Payments are secure and accepted via local and US debit and credit cards.

Dr. Eck’s treatment plan includes chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and surgeries for damage to his right humerus and pelvis.

The Lotteries Committee stated that the list of approved raffle organisers will be updated weekly on the government’s website and added that the list is subject to change weekly, with up-to-date details.

Can Partnerships Help Belize Fight Human Trafficking?

With human trafficking continuing to threaten vulnerable communities, Belize’s government is stepping up its efforts. Officials, experts, and organisations gathered on Thursday to discuss the harsh realities of human trafficking and how to better protect those at risk. The event was organised by the Anti-Trafficking in Persons (ATIPs) Council and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). It focused on the global nature of the issue and how collaboration can drive real change in the fight against exploitation, particularly on the geopolitical and transnational dimensions of human trafficking.

In her opening remarks, CEO of the Ministry of Human Development, Families and Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Adele Catzim-Sanchez spoke on the harsh realities of trafficking but acknowledged the progress made. She said the road ahead requires continued partnership between the government, NGOs, international organisations, and the private sector.

As part of its commitment to fighting human trafficking, the Belize Police Department and the Human Trafficking Institute signed a Memorandum of Understanding this year on February 8. Five months later, the RET International conducted a training session for transportation industry workers to raise awareness of human trafficking in July. The University of Belize incorporating the training into its e-courses.

The Belize City Mayor, Bernard Wagner, highlighted the importance of that training and its impact in building awareness within the transportation industry. “Human trafficking is not only relegated to Belize. It’s all across the world. It’s a million, billion-dollar industry. And having this first step and this starting point, we really should begin to see some returns,” Wagner said.

Magistrate Court Gets a Tech Boost to Clear Case Backlog

Belize’s Magistrate Court is getting a digital makeover to help tackle its growing backlog of cases. On Friday, the court announced that it received new computers, printers, and other essential technology to assist in streamlining its case management system and reduce delays that have long affected justice.

The upgrade is valued at USD 35,000 (BZD 70,000) and is part of the European Union-funded PACE Justice Project, supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

During a handover ceremony, Michael Lund, Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP, and Amilin Mendez, UNDP’s Team Lead for Inclusive Growth, Digitisation, and Governance, presented the equipment to Chief Magistrate Jayani Wegadapola.

“The provision of ICT equipment is a clear example of how targeted interventions can improve the functioning of public institutions, contribute to good governance, and support the modernisation and digitisation of magistrate courts across the country,” the UNDP said in a statement.

PM Proposes to Tighten Enforcement of Traffic Laws

The recent wave of fatal traffic accidents has left many families and friends heartbroken, prompting calls for better infrastructure. Last Saturday, a tragic head-on collision on the George Price Highway, between San Ignacio and Benque Viejo, claimed ten lives, including a motorcyclist who crashed into one of the vehicles. Just a week earlier, in Orange Walk District, a student from Ocean Academy High School lost his life when the van he was in suffered a blowout, veered off the road and flipped multiple times. In response, Cayo North Area Representative Michel Chebat announced on Thursday that the Benque Road will be rebuilt. Today, Prime Minister John Briceño presented the first measures the government is taking, not only to protect lives but also to support first responders who face the traumatic aftermath of these accidents.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“We also have to find whatever help we can give our first responders some kind of counseling. So I asked the Minister of Health, you know, to see what arrangements we can – and he could speak also with the Minister responsible, Minister Habet, to put some kind of program so we can help these first responders. I think it was kind of distasteful for people to hurry put up the pictures of the people that died, not how they looked, but how they looked when they were alive to say that this person is dead. And without no consideration of the trauma that the family is going through. And maybe we need to find some kind of – I hate to put it this way, some kind of legislation to prevent this kind of things from happening. In many instances you don’t even know what happened and then somebody on social media already blasts what happened and in some instances it’s not even the right information. But, I think that generally our country came together during, and still during this difficult period. But too many Belizeans are dying as a result of road traffic accidents. And too frequently, these tragedies could have been avoided if we had less reckless drivers. And we really need to see how we could tighten it so that when people know better, that if you drive under the influence and get in an accident, that we are going to come at you. In the terms of enforcement, we’ve also tasked the Ministry of Transportation to establish more around the clock – 24-hour highway surveillance, but to put more effort into At night, because most of the time it’s at night when people drive after they come from a party or they are drinking to see how we could control or stop as best as we possibly can these driving under the, under the influence. We have to amend the laws for the use of speed guns, breathanalyzers and dash cams. It will also be made to equip war officers with the requisite tools to bring offenders to justice.”

Shyne Barrow Agrees with PM Proposed Traffic Measures

Leader of the Opposition, Moses “Shyne” Barrow, echoed much of what the prime minister said in his presentation. He emphasized the need for the Ministry of Infrastructure Development and Housing to conduct a thorough analysis of Belize’s traffic management system to identify areas for improvement. Barrow also supported the call for stricter enforcement and holding traffic violators accountable.

Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Leader of the Opposition

“I believe that there should be a comprehensive study to see what more can be done from the Ministry of Infrastructure. I believe we need to move from the two-way highways and to expand the George Price. Mile sixty-eight is a perfect example of that. That should be a four-way highway. I think that’s where we need to go as far as infrastructure is concerned. Lighting is important as well, but I would agree that some of the solutions put forward by the Prime Minister seem to be headed in the right direction as far as breathalyzers, speed detectors, et cetera. I know that there was a story that there’s a bunch of breathalyzers in storage somewhere. But that all comes with a human resource, right? We need more people out there. Enforcing and enforcement has been a terrible challenge for this administration, but I do believe a comprehensive study needs to be done to see where it is a matter of enforcement, where the public needs to be held accountable and needs to be, properly, policed to ensure that they are complying with the law and what we can do as far as in expanding infrastructure, um, to make our roads more safe.”

PM Says Government will Lose Five Million through GST Waiver

Prime Minister John Briceño shared that the GST waiver for the two weekends before Christmas was the government’s way of giving shoppers a break from the high cost of living this holiday season. After his presentation in the House, we asked him how much the government expects to lose in GST revenue due to the waiver and what plans are in place to recover those funds.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“We decided to find an innovative way how we can keep our people, give them a chance, give them an ease, and at the same time to be able to help them to stay and spend their monies in Belize. And this is how we came up with that idea. We are giving a tax – a GST holiday for Saturday and Sunday of this week. And next weekend, Saturday and Sunday again. So that people can save at least twelve-point-five percent on their purchases. And once we lose on the revenues to us it’s not only about the money. As a government we need the money, but we want to make people happy and that will make people spend the money here and when they spend money here, they spend it in Belizean-owned businesses and they hire people and then eventually we’ll be able to collect the taxes but we’ll still make it up at the day.”

Marion Ali

“The GST waivers that so many people are thankful for, how will the government recover those necessary taxes that you would have collected had you not given this offer? And how much can you say it works out to?”

Prime Minister John Briceno

“It is estimated it’s going to be a minimum of five million dollars that we’re going to be foregoing but we believe that by Belizeans not going to Chetumal, that they could keep their money here, we can make up for a portion of the losses. We believe that by Belizeans, quite likely since they’re saving twelve and a half percent, most of them are going to spend more. to help us to be able to capture that. But also there’s something that you can’t put monetary value. And that is the joy of families and the joy of the children and saying, okay, I could get a gift, you know, or spend a better, happier Christmas than before. There’s no monetary value for that. So, it is something that we, we, we fully recognize and know that, um, we could do with the money. But, at the end of the day, it is about serving people and making them feel good about themselves. When you look at Belize City, the, the, um, when they lit the Christmas tree, it was two weeks ago, you see. I mean, thousands of people are out there. The Mopan had a wonderful one. Tonight we’re going to do one in Orange Walk Town in Las, in Las Banquitas, out there. You can’t put a monetary value on that.”

Opposition Leader Raises Questions and Slams GST Waiver

During today’s House Sitting, there was a lively exchange between Leader of the Opposition Moses “Shyne” Barrow and Prime Minister John Briceño. Barrow pressed for specific answers to his questions but was dissatisfied with the responses he received. He later shared his frustrations with reporters outside. We’ll listen to part of that exchange and then hear Barrow’s take on the Prime Minister’s reasoning for the GST waiver.

Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Leader of the Opposition

”My content had no aspersions because you would not allow that, Madam Speaker.”

Speaker Valerie Woods

“Thank you. Honourable Prime Minister, can we just answer the question? We’ve already dealt with the first.”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Madam Speaker, just a point I’m making, that if he wanted information, he could have gone and speak to the Honorable Minister, and he would have given all the information. But he thinks he will embarrass the Minister to come and ask that question here. Likewise, Madam Speaker, the same thing comes along with the issue of fuel. The member from Mesopotamia ought to know t how to frame his question in such a way that it does not expose himself.”

Moses “Shyne” Barrow

“It took them four years to come up with this right before the general elections are supposed to be called? So he said he came up with it in two weeks. So for four years, he didn’t know that Belizeans need relief? For four years, we were dealing with COVID, then we were dealing with inflation for the last three years. And now, right before election, they give this carrot, which is not real because if you look at the price gouging crisis that we have been having, where even when they made certain provisions for women’s necessities, and you’d go to not be taxed or to have certain tax exemptions. You’d go, I have constituents that complain that they go to the market and the prices don’t change. Sugar, which is a control price. They sell for more than the control price, so to say that the G.S.T will do anything when some of these supermarkets don’t even report the proper G.S.T and can build in the price to include what would have been G.S.T and all the government gets to do is say, “Oh, we have waived G.S.T,” but they have proven very ineffective and incompetent when it comes to enforcement.”

Officers Charged for Dyandre Chee’s Mare Out on Bail

Tonight, two police officers, Salomen Cowo and Esmin Flores, are finally seeing their High Court bail of twenty thousand dollars executed, allowing them to go home for Christmas while awaiting their murder trial. Back in July, Justice Derick Sylvester granted them bail but stipulated that if their case wasn’t tried by December 2024, they would be released. Today, that order is being fulfilled. The officers, charged with the murder of Dyandre Chee in March 2023, received the good news virtually from their prison cell during a High Court session with Justice Rafael Morgan. Represented by attorneys Richard “Dickie” Bradley and Lynden Jones, the officers are now preparing to secure their bail. The tragic incident that led to their charges involved the shooting death of Chee, which sparked controversy in Orange Walk. An eyewitness claimed the officers shot Chee without provocation, contradicting the officers’ account that they believed they were under fire. Despite objections from the DPP, Justice Sylvester granted bail with conditions, including weekly check-ins and no interference with witnesses. Now, after nearly two years, the officers are set to reunite with their families for the holidays.