The Commissioner of Police as weighed in on a viral video that captures a Belize City man physically assaulting a child. The shocking footage shows the individual slapping, kicking and punching the infant multiple times on two separate occasions. The perpetrator has since been arrested and charged with common assault. ComPol Williams had a few choice words for the culprit. He also noted that further measures would have been taken against the individual if police were in possession of the video before he was taken to court. Here is what he told us.
Chester Williams
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
“I cannot say what I want to say publicly. But when I first saw the video the first thing that came to my mind is this really Belize? And then the next thing that came to my mind is this actually a person? Is this person a man? I do not know. But the level of abuse that that “thing”, I don’t event want to call him a man, put on that child, is disgusting and it should be condemned in its greatest term. No child should be subjected to such abuse. And to make it worse, the child seemed so mannerly, seemed so compliant and as much as the child was mannerly and compliant this thing continued to beat the child, for what? What was he trying to achieve? What did that child do to him for him to beat the child in such a way? It is disgusting. As I saw the video I communicated with Mr. Romero, and I was happy that he told me that we have already dealt with the matter and the man has been charged. The only sad part about the whole story is that we did not see the video until after he had gone to court, because if we had seen the video before he had gone to court, we would have objected to bail. So that is the only sad part about it, by the time we saw the video he was already in court and had already gotten bail. I don’t believe a person of his magnitude should be out in public, he should not be. He should be around no child, absolutely none.”
Across the region, people have been suffering from the effects of a severe heatwave. The extreme weather conditions have led to exhaustion and dehydration, as well losses in agriculture, as brush fires are made worse by the rising temperatures. Also forced to cope with these conditions are the thousands of animals that occupy the affected areas. In recent weeks, Mexico’s southeastern tropical forest has observed the sudden deaths of monkeys, parrots and toucans as they succumb to the soaring temperatures. As Belize has also been experiencing record high weather conditions the question of how the extreme heat has been affecting our native species is being raised. Here’s News Five’s Britney Gordon with those answers.
Britney Gordon, Reporting
Across the region, birds and monkeys are dying at an alarming rate. Every year, as temperatures rise, wildlife conservationists have worked to combat the effects on animals. However, as this year continues to see severe weather conditions, they have had to double their efforts. Jamal Andrewin-Bohn, Conservation Program Manager at the Belize Zoo, gave us some insight into the issue.
On the phone: Jamal Andrewin-Bohn
On the phone: Jamal Andrewin-Bohn, Conservation Program Manager, Belize Zoo
“Typically we, obviously we’ve been in a position where we’ve had to respond to animals in distress for a variety of environmental, risks of disaster and heat and fire are among those. So yes, we do get reports of animals seeming to be disoriented dehydrated, exhausted from exposed, prolonged exposure to heat and also lack of access to water simply because the natural ponds and creeks that they would typically access do eventually dry up in the winter. in the peak of the dry season and so they have to move further afield looking for water looking for food sources and of course this itself is a pressure on the animals but then it also puts them at a higher chance of encountering humans and coming into conflict with human.”
He said that mammals and birds are some of the most affected animals, but reptiles such as iguanas and snakes have reacted poorly to the heat as well, as they struggle to regulate their body temperature. Nikki Buxton, Executive Director of Belize Bird Rescue, told us how birds are coping with the heat.
Nikki Buxton
Nikki Buxton, Executive, Belize Bird Rescue
“I think they’re probably all struggling, but the beauty of birds is that they can fly and they can get away from these situations, which definitely gives them an edge over every other species that’s not flighted. And the migrants are struggling. I think they’re totally confused as to when they should migrate. And what they’re migrating into and what they travel through at that time as well. And it’s not, you know, we’re talking about fires, but it’s not just that there’s extreme weather all year round, and they encounter a lot of that during the migration patterns. But the birds that make Belize their home and the ones that rely on certain environments and have niche environments, they’re the ones that are going to suffer the most.”
Buxton said that due to the recent fires, the air quality has been especially poor for birds, affecting where they choose to build their nests. She said that there are limited resources to combat fires and that the addition of fire beaters and hoses would assist the fire service in making fires more preventable. Andrewin-Bohn says that the team at the Belize Zoo has been hard at work trying to aid the animals in beating the heat.
On the phone: Jamal Andrewin-Bohn
“So this is not new. This is over several decades where we’ve been advocating for a more mindful application of fire and utilization of resources. And so what we have done the zoo as an entity with its partners, and that’s one of the biggest. Efforts we’ve taken on to address this is we have for the last We have been part of a working group that specifically deals with fire management issues in central Belize. And it is a coalition of not just non-governmental entities, but with input and support from the Belize Forest Department. But most importantly, from communities within our area, communities that are in fire prone areas like the savannah, that have to deal with wildfires threatening their homes, their properties, their livelihoods, their health and wellbeing until it’s a collective effort to reduce the impact of fires.”
He explained that the zoo has taken additional measures to ensure that the animals survive the heatwave, such as the addition of a new pond and trucking in over two thousand gallons of water daily. Buxton said that we should try to assist the animals in any way possible.
Nikki Buxton
“I think we’ve got to think of the birds and the animals in the same way as we think of other selves. We know that that heat drives thirst. The moisture that we have in our bodies evaporates so much faster. So it would be really nice if people could think about other species on this planet and maybe provide a water source for them. We’ve got some really amazing families that are putting out drinking bottles that they’ve created from old plastic bottles, which is absolutely fantastic and also think about the domestic animals that we have. It’s not enough now just to tie a dog with a little bottle of water in this, in this temperature, we need to make sure that they have a lot like a bucket full. So I think we’ve got to be more thoughtful”
Brushfires continue to wreak havoc across Toledo District where farmers from several communities, including San Pedro, Columbia, are directly affected. The National Emergency Management Organization has responded with firefighting and relief efforts, however, the opposition is calling on the Briceño administration to introduce a supplementary to the House of Representatives. The additional funds would be used to provide assistance to families that have lost their homes and livelihoods as a result of the devastating fires. Over the weekend, Shyne Barrow, the Leader of the Opposition, visited several communities in the south and saw firsthand the damage that has been left in the wake of these forest fires.
Shyne Barrow
Shyne Barrow, Leader of the Opposition
“It’s very heart wrenching to visit families that have lost everything due to these wildfires. So I was able to find some resources to help at least four families in the rebuilding of their homes on behalf of Dennis Williams who is going to be the next area representative of Toledo East, by the grace of God. But certainly it brings into sharp focus the role of NEMO and the role of the Ministry of Housing in these types of emergencies. I know I have been extremely critical of the government when it comes to them bringing supplementary after supplementary to the house, but if the Ministry of Housing cannot find within the current budget the resources to help these families, the opposition would certainly support a supplementary in this instance which is the true intent of the supplementary. It is for the emergencies that could not have been anticipated when the budget was being forecasted, and this certainly counts in that. It also brings into sharp focus the fact that we need to look at investments in our apparatus to deal with these wildfires as far as planes that could fly over to release water to put out these fires.”
Forty-four-year-old Ronny Sierra was working on the rooftop of a house in Esperanza Village when he slipped and fell. Sierra, a resident of Benque Viejo del Carmen, had just started working with a construction company three weeks ago. According to a relative, the incident has left the Sierra family in grief over the loss of their youngest sibling who had just left a voice message on Monday, wishing an older brother well. This morning when he fell, he landed on a wooden stump that had a sharp edge at the top. The stump penetrated Sierra’s right upper chest, causing his death. News Five’s Marion Ali reports.
Marion Ali, Reporting
This piece of stick protruding out of the ground wouldn’t be considered a hazard, but this morning, forty-four-year-old Ronny Sierra fell on it and lost his life. The construction worker was on the roof of this house in Esperanza Village when he slipped. It stabbed him in the right upper part of his chest, killing him. Sierra’s older brother, Carmito, told News Five via phone that Ronny took his job seriously.
Via phone: Carmito Sierra
Via phone: Carmito Sierra, Brother of deceased
“What we learned from him was that he needs to be punctual at work, and he needed to be at work every day. He was very responsible, not only with his immediate family, but with also his brothers and sisters. Whenever we needed help from him, when it comes to helping the family, he was al always there.”
Carmito Sierra said that he spoke with his younger brother only hours before he lost his life.
Via phone: Carmito Sierra
“I spoke with him only last night. I sent him a message because I was doing some construction work – getting someone to go to do construction work, and so I told him to recommend someone to me. The last words that he said was he wished me the best, and may everything go fine, and then God’s blessings. And just last night, he did that recording and sent it to me.”
Carmito Sierra said that the family will remember Ronny as a hard-working person who was selfless and thoughtful, and someone who always looked out for them, even though he was the youngest one. Marion Ali for News Five.
Although making up less than four percent of the population, the East Indian community is coming forward to remind Belizeans that their culture is alive. In this week’s episode of Kolcha Tuesday, we take you to Punta Gorda Town, where we met with a group of girls who are sharing their heritage in the way they know best: dance. Here’s News Five’s Britney Gordon with the story.
Britney Gordon, Reporting
From Mayans to Chinese. From Garifuna to Creole. Many of the diverse and rich communities that gave the country the title, “melting pot of cultures” can be found in southern Belize. It is here, in Toledo District that we find the heartbeat of the East Indian community, fighting to preserve its culture. At the 2024 Chocolate Fest of Belize, held in Punta Gorda Town, several cultures were highlighted through music and dance. The East Indian community was represented by three girls who wanted to find a way to connect with their heritage since they do not know the language and felt that dance would be the perfect medium to do so. Venice Parham, one of the dancers at the event, explained this desire to us.
Venice Parham
Venice Parham, Dancer
“The kind of dance that we were doing is our cultural dance. It’s an East Indian that descends way from India. We practice almost every time when there is events. We try to keep our culture alive because our East Indian culture in Belize doesn’t really show so we try to keep it alive through dance and our food.”
The trio of dancers has been practicing together since primary school, having grown up watching family members and friends attempt to preserve the culture in the same way. Giselle Parham, older sister of one of the dancers explained how they navigate the disconnect with the culture.
Giselle Parham
Giselle Parham, Former Dancer
“So for the East Indian culture, one way that we would preserve it as young youths, because growing up, I started when I was about ten in primary school. We represented our primary schools. I also represented my high school but, again, how we preserve and try to keep the cultures alive is through dancing. We don’t know what these songs are saying, what it means. We don’t really know what the move means in these dances. But we just try to look at these YouTube videos, these dances that these Indians do. And we basically just do the same thing and portray it through dancing.”
Fourteen-year-old Arceli Parham was the lead choreographer for the performance, she explained that she put together the routine through YouTube and with the help of her sister.
Arceli Parham
Arceli Parham, Lead Choreographer
“I get choreographed from like, some of the dances, like the dance songs. Sometimes the choreographer is in there, and I just pick up some of the dances from that. Since my sister, she danced, when she was younger, so I also got some ideas from her. There’s two dances that I remember. There’s Nainowale and Aaja Nachle .”
Arceli and her family carry their desire to embrace their East Indian heritage into their love for pageantry. She explained that the dancers were able to source the dresses from her sister, Arelee Parham, who represented Belize at the Miss International Council of India Culture in Trinidad and Tobago in 2019. Dancer, Viaani Mangar, said that she is honored to take up the mantle and set examples for other young girls.
Viaanie Mangar
Viaanie Mangar, Dancer
“To be honest, I wasn’t really nervous because I really love this cultural dancing that I am a proud East Indian. And it really means a lot because the culture in Belize is dying. So, we as young youths have to encourage younger youths when they get our age to be able to do stuff like that.”
Britney Gordon
“How did you girls get the chance to dance here today? Who approached you about this?”
Viaanie Mangar
“We got our chance through her sister, Giselle Parham, which works at Copal. Her sister was the queen once, and they continued dancing, and right now she gave it up, so she passed it down to us, and we are currently dancing at Copal Lodge.”
Giselle believes that if people in the community continue to encourage youths to engage with the culture in fun ways, then it is possible to reclaim other aspects such as language. She hopes that through passing on the love for dancing, a new wave of support will be ignited for her people.
Giselle Parham
“We try to pass this now on to my younger sister and my other little cousins for them to also be advocates for other children’s out here who are East Indian descent, that they can be able to proudly represent their culture through dances, to maybe one of these days, learn the languages. Our culture is one of the cultures that lost their language. It’s most of their traditions, music dances many, many years ago, and we really don’t know what it’s all about. And so us as the younger generation have to come out and try to preserve it, try to learn about it, try to learn the history so that we could be able to spread the word because is really three percent of Belize’s population and that’s a very little amount tpo say that we have a huge support.”
The Senate Special Select Committee’s public hearing resumed today inside the National Assembly. The committee is tasked with looking into the Portico Definitive Agreement. And, this morning David Gegg, the principal of Portico Enterprises Limited, was once again called to testify before the committee. Gegg, unlike other individuals who have been called before the committee, has been candid about the company’s affairs and signing of the agreement. The four-hundred-million-dollar project remains in limbo. Viewers may recall that former U.D.P. minister, Tracy Panton, who served as the Minister of State in the Ministry of Investments, was the first person to testify before the committee back in December 2023. She told the committee that she did not see, nor did she read the definitive agreement. Today, Gegg asserted that Panton never supported Portico Enterprises Limited for any reason other than her allegiance was elsewhere.
David Gegg
David Gegg, Developer, Portico Enterprises Limited
“She would never have supported our project Senator, you know that. She was firmly committed to the other one. She was out there with a shovel digging dirt at the time they had groundbreaking. Totally committed to the other one and did everything she could to prevent our project from materializing.”
Kevin Herrera
Kevin Herrera, Senator
“So you don’t believe there was anything you could have done to satisfy?”
David Gegg
“I couldn’t compete with Mr. Feinstein.”
Kevin Herrera
“What do you mean by that?”
David Gegg
“His resources for support were far greater than ours and besides that we had commitments through our relationship with Boskalis that we could not provide any money to any minister for anything whatsoever. That was written in our agreement with them.”
Kevin Herrera
“I know the letter that was written to the prime minister was also copied to Ms. Panton, do you believe she may have seen that letter?”
David Gegg
“I believe she tore it up.”
Kevin Herrera
“Why did you say that?”
David Gegg
“Because she did not want our project to proceed.”
As we have reported, the Portico Definitive Agreement was signed in 2020 by Erwin Contreras, the former U.D.P. Minister of Economic Development. During today’s session Gegg noted that he met with Contreras after receiving word that the project’s environmental clearance would not be approved because the National Environmental Appraisal Committee did not have a quorum when the matter was deliberated. Gegg says the former minister informed him that he would sign the agreement if certain conditions were included in the document.
David Gegg
David Gegg, Developer, Portico Enterprises Limited
“That we certainly felt was necessary to get the Definitive Agreement and when I was told after the August twenty-eight meeting, I felt really good about that, and then a few days later we were told no quorum, so we don’t have it. It was after that in sheer frustration and disgust that I went to meet with Mr. Contreras to share with him what had happened, and he said clearly that we don’t have an environment clearance so he doesn’t think he can accommodate the signing of a definitive agreement. I pointed out that the Harvest Caye agreement had been signed without them first getting environmental clearance. The long and short of it is that Minister Contreras got back to us and said if we are prepared to implement certain conditions precedent, including that in the absence of environmental clearance, documents is not enforceable then he would sign it and that is what he signed, the document he signed really was of no value to us because without environment clearance we had nothing to stand on.”
The Definitive Agreement was signed on October first, 2020, in Belmopan. But why was the signing of the document not made public? That was one of the questions posed to David Gegg during today’s senate inquiry. He responded by saying that Portico Enterprises Limited had nothing to hide, adding that mischief makers are pushing that narrative.
David Gegg
David Gegg, Developer, Portico Enterprises Limited
“I was told it could be signed on such and such a date. I came to Belmopan, and it was signed.”
Kevin Herrera
Kevin Herrera, Senator
“Was there any press release or any type of public statement that day?”
David Gegg
“I don’t think there is a press release for any sort of definitive agreement that was signed by any minister of this country. It was never something that is publicized. This Definitive Agreement became scandalous because certain individuals wanted to get it out there and make it scandalous. There are a lot of agreements in the country that we hear nothing about and seek no information on because it is none of our business.”
Kevin Herrera
“Was there any request that this be placed under wraps?”
David Gegg
“I am glad you asked that because the suggestion has constantly been that we chose to hide it and that is totally not true. BTIA had a full day function in Belize City, and I think it was in May 2022. I was invited to make a presentation as well Dr. Dione Chamberlin on behalf of the Port of Belize and Mr. Feinstein on behalf of Stake Bank. Dr. Chamberlin and I showed up, Mr. Feinstein did not. On that day in my presentation, I said publicly that we had a definitive agreement that had been signed on such a day and we had environmental clearance that had been signed a year before. I did not try to hide the fact that we had a definitive agreement. Other mischief makers out there were alluding to the suggestion that it was being hidden. We don’t go out there and hang up our documents to the public.”
Kevin Herrera
“Were you promised by the current administration that they would be taking legislation to parliament?”
David Gegg
“Yes, as they are obliged to do through the definitive agreement. The agreement speaks to the fact that they are obliged to do that.”
Kevin Herrera
“Were you taken a back that the Cabinet meeting turned out as it did?
David Gegg
“I was taken a back by the fact that it took them so long to do something, then yes I was taken aback when I heard the results of it.”
Senator Janelle Chanona pressed developer David Gegg further on the lack of publicity behind the Portico Definitive Agreement when it was initially signed. She asserted that any investor would want to publicize such a huge achievement if it was intended for the benefit of Belizeans. Here is how that exchange played out.
Janelle Chanona, Senator
“Even before last year when this inquiry commenced, why no fanfare, why nobody is talking about it before that Cabinet leak?”
David Gegg
David Gegg, Developer, Portico Enterprises Limited
“Because the attacks by my competitors were continuous, daily nightly, social media, and I said let me just do my thing in the corner and here I am today and where are they?”
Janelle Chanona
“I can’t help but feel that if you had this and this project is what you say it is, would it have mattered what any critic said?”
David Gegg
“Senator I have a lot of contacts in the industry, the people who know they will benefit from the project, they are the ones I keep in contact with. I don’t have to go on TV and say this and that. I don’t even have social media, YouTube or whatever, Facebook, I don’t even have a Facebook, I don’t need it. There are too many garbage out there. I have my support, grass roots people on the ground who knows they are going to benefit from this project when it materializes. They are the ones who count.”
Since his re-election to the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police executive, ComPol Williams says he is focused on executing his commitments to Belize and the regional organizations he serves. When we asked him about his political aspirations, he says that politics is out of the question, but just for now. He also took a shot at the Leader of the Opposition, Moses “Shyne” Barrow in his remarks. Here is what he had to say.
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
“Like I said, there is nothing wrong to think, to think about what you want to do, about where you want to go, nothing wrong with thinking. And I have been thinking about what I want to do when I leave the commissionership. Yes, I am an attorney I can go an practice law, but that is something I really want to do. I fight all my life to keep criminal behind bars. I don’t foresee myself fighting to take criminals out. I don’t so I have to think what would be next for me. Yes, going to politics looks very attractive. So I am thinking about it. It does not mean because you think of something means you are going to do it or it is going to happen. I am more at this time focused on doing what I can to achieve the objectives of the police department and by extension the country of Belize and likewise to fulfill my commitment to the other two police associations that I have in Central America and the Caribbean. So for now politics is out of the question, so you can tell my friend, the leader of the opposition, that he can rest for now. I am more focused on ensuring I do what needs to be done to keep this country safe.”
