On Friday, Marconi Leal Junior, the standard bearer for Belize Rural North, hosted a land distribution clinic. However, Leal Junior mentioned that the clinic was only for registered voters in Burrell Boom Village. When asked why the clinic wasn’t open to all Belizeans, Prime Minister John Briceño seemed to lose his temper. Here’s what he had to say.
Prime Minister John Briceño
“Again there goes Channel Seven twisting things man. Sometimes you need to be a journalist, man, and that don’t be anyway. Let me answer your question. Basically, when you have these clinics, the area representatives have to pay for the, to move all these people. The ministry does not have the funding. So the area representative, or in this case Marconi Leal Sr., and his son of extension, now the candidate, they pay thousands of dollars to have employees who come to work, because they work late at night, and they have to host them in hotels. So what is it that you want to do? You want to make sure that you can take care of the people that you want to serve. In this instance, it was the people of Belize Rural North. When you look back, you all have the 2020 vision. Maybe you should have used the word, registered voters, and probably just would have said the people living in the boom area. Because what has been happening is that the people here, People from all over the country go in there and then they’re not looking after the needs of the people that they’re going there for. So it has nothing to do with who’s registered or nothing. It’s simply because they pay for this and so they want to make sure that they can give service to the people that they’re servicing. very much. Okay, That’s it.”
Today, the Development Finance Corporation (DFC) launched its ninth consolidated line of credit. This initiative is part of an ongoing partnership between the DFC and the Caribbean Development Bank. It’s the third line of credit the DFC has introduced in the past two years, aimed at helping Belizeans secure loans for education, renewable energy projects, and small to medium-sized businesses. Here’s more on that.
Henry Anderson
Henry Anderson, Chief Executive Officer, D.F.C.
“This is significant is a significant milestone for CDB and for DFC. As was said in the presentations, this is the third line of credit that DFC is getting in the past two years. How do we decide what we need? We have a pipeline, right? We have people and businesses coming to us, seeing, the kind of opportunities they need. And so we sit with CDB and then we construct a consolidated line. The reason we call it consolidated is because of the different parts that it has, right? In this case Porsche eighteen of the forty million goes to private sector. In form of MSMEs, which means firms up to thirty million believes in sales. Nine million goes to mortgage lending homes, financing homes. Nine million goes for student loans for tertiary education. And four million for renewable energy and energy efficiency. We have those. Basically, we intend to implement this loan in about two years in terms of disbursement. Or maybe a little bit over that. But the economy is performing, and when the economy is performing, the demand is there.”
Prime Minister John Briceño
Prime Minister John Briceño
“At one time, you think it’s only the commercial banks you can go to, but because they have the funding, no small businesses can come to the DFC to get. Women, you have different special programs designed for women. They can come to the DFC. Students, DFC is probably the only institution that have special loans for students. I remember helping a young man earlier this last month actually. In January, who was studying in Barbados. And what the bank does is that they have a loan, of course they have to have a sponsor, they pay only interest while they’re studying. And then when they come back, they pay the interest and the capital. These programs create real opportunities for people.”
Today, two students from Saint Ignatius High School in Belize set off on an exciting journey to North Carolina. Seventeen-year-old Flevian Strand and eighteen-year-old Silsa Perez were awarded this trip by the STEM U Foundation of the USA for being the top fourth-form students in welding and non-destructive testing. We caught up with them at the Philip Goldson International Airport this afternoon to hear their thoughts on this amazing opportunity.
Jeaneane Neal
Jeaneane Neal, Principal, St. Ignatius High School
“STEMU Foundation is an NPO organization in the United States that offers support to STEM studies, anything that has to do with the STEM. St. Ignatius High School developed and keep developing, changing its curriculum. Fortunately, the Ministry of Education gives us that opportunity. It’s that leverage for us to be able to develop curriculums as it pertains to the abilities of our students. At St. Ignatius High School, yes, where we have students who are academically inclined, those who can build themselves in terms of spirituality. However, we decided to work on the STEM studies. We have students who want to venture into engineering architecture. And of course, we have the welding and nondestructive testing, which the students are able to tell you about.”
Silsa Perez
Silsa Perez, Student, St. Ignatius High School
“ Taking this advantage means so much to me because I have the opportunity to find more experience outside and not only here. My studies here are only general in home economics, which is cooking the primary, agriculture, which is my primary one, and welding and non-dt.”
Flevian Strand
Flevian Strand, Student, St. Ignatius High School
“ At first, when I heard it, it caught my attention. So I decided to try it. It’s really helped me a lot throughout the years. I’ve learned a lot actually and I hope in the future I learn more because I’m really interested in the program.”
Seventeen-year-old Nyasha Harris is not only pursuing a degree in Business Entrepreneurship but also making waves on the running track. When she’s not hitting the books, she’s out there conquering the world with her speed. Her dream is to represent Belize at the 2028 Olympics in the United States, and she’s well on her way. News Five’s Paul Lopez caught up with Harris after school at the Marion Jones Sporting Complex to learn more about this young athlete blazing a trail in track and field.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
Seventeen-year-old Nyasha Harris is making waves in track and field on the regional stage. Her best events are the one hundred and two-hundred-meter races. Last year, Harris made history as the first Belizean female to win gold in the hundred-meter race at the Under Eighteen CODICADER Games in El Salvador. She then went to Playa de Carmen, Mexico, and brought home two more gold medals. In February, she dominated the ATLIB Track and Field Championships, winning gold in the hundred and two-hundred-meter races, the relay race, and the high jump. Just two weeks ago, Harris added two more gold medals to her collection in those races at a World Athletics event in Mexico.
Nyasha Harris
Nyasha Harris, Track and Field Athlete
“It started from my parents, I got it in the genes. My mom uses to do track. She went to Guatemala and won silver. My aunts did track and field as well. I was born; I went to preschool where I started running for Sports Days. Then we moved on to primary school where I was running for sports day, and I got into the track meet for the CSSSA.”
The Central Secondary Schools Sporting Association (CSSSA) gave Harris an early taste of high-level competition while she was still in primary school. When she moved on to high school, she continued to compete in the CSSSA and kept her gold medal streak alive.
Nyasha Harris
“I want to be just like my mom and even better than her. I want to continue her dream because she did want to finish track and field because she I am doing that for her too.”
Paul Lopez
“Is there a race that solidified this journey for you to say this is the route I want to take?”
Nayasha Harris
“It would be the one in October where I ran and came in first for the one hundred.”
Despite the worn-out tracks at the Marion Jones Sporting Complex, Harris continues her training there. Over the past two years, her hundred-meter dash times have improved dramatically. Her coach, Fred Evans, a seasoned track and field expert, may have lost his hearing, but that hasn’t stopped him from giving Harris the guidance she needs to keep excelling.
Fred Evans
Fred Evans, Coach
“I was hoping she would be good enough to get into the Olympics last year, but she has an accident, I will call it an accident because it was PE at school and she tore the muscles in her calf. So that just set her back. We want to get her in a system where the environment, the culture is track and field and books and then she can really excel. I think she can be good enough to have the national record for the one hundred meters and represent us at the 2028 Olympics.”
Nyasha Harris
“My vision will definitely be 2028 Olympics. I am really trying to make it there in the next four years.”
Balancing her studies as a Business Entrepreneurship major with her track and field training, this teenage athlete has a full schedule. Despite the challenges, she deeply appreciates the support from Belizeans cheering her on in her races.
Nyasha Harris
“I really want to say thank you guys, all the messages and comment is have been receiving makes me really grateful and more confident in my races ahead of me. I realty want to make Belize proud and put you on the map, so I am trying my hardest. I want to say to you guys thanks for all the support as well.”
Good evening and welcome to another edition of Sports Monday, I’m Paul Lopez. You might be wondering if the Belize District Football Association plans to finish its first division tournament. The tragic murder of Brandon Baptist during the semifinals at the Marion Jones Sporting Complex a few weeks ago is still fresh in everyone’s minds. The final showdown between Survivors F.C. and Tut Bay F.C. is now set for March 1st. We spoke with Ian Gaynair, an Executive Member of the football association, about the upcoming match and the security measures in place.
Ian Gaynair
Ian Gaynair, Executive Member, BDFA
“I like that both sides have a lot of big fan base. I think the energy is high and everybody is looking to the finals. They are asking me when is the finals, when is the finals. And now, we had to set the final game for, we want to play it last Saturday, but because players from Survivors said they are not fully recovered, so we had to give everyone a fair chance. We cant play it this Saturday due to some players from Tutbay about five of their platers are still high school students and they are going to the nations. Being very considerate, we will push it until next week so that nobody has any issue and everybody is ready. The team that win the champion will go and represent in interdistrict. We went to police station to have a discussion with some of the higher-ranking police for the safety of everyone that will attend he game. It will play four-thirty on Saturday March first. We will safeguard everyone from the parking lot the bears and the field, officials everybody will be safe. We will bring out a lot more police.”
So, that tournament is set to conclude on March first. As Gaynair mentioned, the Secondary School Football Nationals are set for this coming weekend. Pallotti and Gwen Lizarraga High Schools will proudly represent Belize Central in the tournament. This decision was made over the weekend at the Marion Jones Sporting Complex. Pallotti High School took on Saint Catherine’s Academy for the spot. The rain that came down the night before left the football field wet and muddy.
The first goal of the match came from SCA’s Maliyah Garcia. She sent the ball flaying towards the goal and got the bounce over the goal keeper’s head. A foul on SCA’s number nine sends her plunging into mud and water and a read card for Pallotti’s Arriyannie Hernandez. Early in the second half, Pallotti’s Jasha Bernardez gained control from midfield, sprinted towards goal and gently tapped the ball over the goal keeper’s head to put her team on the score board. Five minutes later, SCA’s Maliya Garcia once again from out of nowhere sends the ball into the goal and regains the lead for SCA. Bernardez scored again in the sixty-second minute of the game with a corner shot that bounced off the keeper and went into the goal, tying the game at two apiece.Bernardez later scored a penalty shot awarded to her team from a foul inside the penalty box. She scored and completed a hat trick. Her team took the lead with three goals. The match finished with that score, sending Pallotti High School to the national tournament. We heard from Bernardez.
Jasha Bernardez
Jasha Bernardez, Captain, Pallotti High School.
“I saw my team struggling a little bit. So, during the second half I told my coach that I think we should make a change which is putting me at the top and put two other persons where I was defending before, so that we could score and when we are finished scoring defend. So, I guess that is how the game ended in our favor.”
The boys’ game was a whole different story. Gwen Lizarraga’s team absolutely crushed Wesley’s boys, ending the match with a staggering ten-zero score. From the very start, it was clear which team was superior, and Gwen Lizarraga dominated the field. Wesley opened the game with possession of the ball. It is cleared with Gwen Liz Calvin Thurton hot on its heels. A clean tackle leads to a turnover and a goal for Thurton six seconds after the starting whistle was blown. Thurton went on to score an addition three goals for four at the end of the game. The remaining goals came from five other Gwen Lizarraga players.
Now, let’s paddle away from football and dive into some thrilling canoe racing action. The La Ruta Maya Belize River Challenge is upon us. The last race ahead of that grand slam event was held on Sunday. Paddlers raced from Burrell Boom to Belize City. We’re now at the final stretch of the La Ruta Maya competition, with a total of eighteen canoes racing to the finish line. And, the paddlers are off. Early in the race there was at least one spill in the river. Just outside of Ladyville, heading into Belize City, three teams are in the lead, stern to stern, Guava Limb, Memory Lane Global Missions and Team Lucas Oil Mixed. Heading into Belize City at the Haulover Creek Bridge, Global Missions gained a slight edge over Guava Limb as they pressed on to the finish line.
From the Riverside Tavern, where the finish line was set, spectators watched as Global Missions paddled ahead with a commanding lead over Guava Limb. They crossed the finish line in first place, leaving Guava Limb to take second. Team Lucas Oil, featuring one female paddler, secured third place. We caught up with the victorious team for their thoughts.
Amado Cruz
Amado Cruz, Memory Lane Global
“I want to say thanks to my two teammates, Christian and Carlos, they are good paddlers. I mean, training is everything and once you put in the work you get good results.”
Paul Lopez
“Talk about when you all let go of Guava Limb, because going into the channel you are were neck and neck, and what is the competition like with Guava Limb.”
Amado Cruz
“You cannot underestimate anybody right now and Guava Limb is the defending champions of La Ruta Maya. We got a break in the channel, and we did a move, got an advantage over them and kept that pace and ended up holding that first place.”
Finally for tonight, Well folks, that is all we have for you in tonight’s coverage of Sports Monday. Catch you in the next one.
Prime Minister John Briceño has weighed in on a recent land distribution hosted on Friday in the Belize Rural North area.
The event raised questions about whether applicants were required to be registered voters or if Belizean citizenship alone should qualify individuals for land ownership.
PM Briceño explained that land distribution clinics require significant financial resources that the government does not always have available. As a result, Leal Jr. and his father, Marconi Leal Sr.—often cover the costs themselves, including lodging and expenses for ministry employees who facilitate the process.
“Now the candidate, they pay thousands of dollars to have employees who come to work, because they work late at night, and they have to host them in hotels. So what is it that you want to do? You want to make sure that you can take care of the people that you want to serve,” the Prime Minister explained.
Briceño suggested that the wording of the public notice might have been clearer, saying that instead of specifying “registered voters,” it might have been better to refer more broadly to residents of the area. He pointed out that in past land clinics, individuals from outside the constituency had taken advantage of the process, potentially limiting opportunities for those actually living in Belize Rural North.
A group of 55 students, teachers, and parents from Patchakan RC Primary School in Corozal embarked on an educational expedition at the Caracol Archaeological Site. Led by Friends for Conservation and Development’s Environmental Educator Justin Pook Jr., the group explored the vast Chiquibul Forest, gaining firsthand insight into its ecological importance and cultural heritage.
The Standard 5 and 6 students experienced the region’s breathtaking landscapes, from the towering Mayan temples of Caracol to the scenic Rio on Pools and the Rio Frio Caves. The trip aimed to deepen their understanding of Belize’s natural resources and the critical role they play in sustaining biodiversity and environmental balance.
FCD commended Patchakan RC Primary for its commitment to environmental education and expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science, and Technology (MoECST), the Belize Forest Department, and the National Institute of Culture and History for facilitating the trip.
United Democratic Party (UDP) Deputy Leader Hugo Patt has expressed deep concern over the ongoing internal conflict within the party, describing the situation as “unprecedented” and “disheartening” for supporters across the country.
During his appearance on Open Your Eyes, Patt acknowledged the turmoil that has plagued the UDP, particularly in the past few months. “It’s very unfortunate what has been happening in the UDP,” he said. “Our very own supporters are waiting for a miracle—for us to get our act together.”
The party’s internal strife, marked by leadership struggles and factional disputes, has left many members frustrated. Patt said that UDP supporters, both in Belize and abroad, are calling for an end to the infighting and a return to unity.
As Deputy Leader, Patt revealed that he has attempted to mediate between the rival factions within the party. However, he acknowledged that the leadership battle remains the biggest challenge, with multiple aspirants vying for control. “Personally, I am of the view that whoever becomes a party leader, that person has to have the ability to be able to work with everybody, to be able to handle all kinds of situations,” he noted.
Politicians are knocking on every Belizean’s door, which means the election season is officially in full swing for the next 30 days. Campaigns are heating up, political flags are going up, and many are proudly displaying their allegiance by wearing their party’s colour on their sleeves or the faces of the leaders they champion on the backs of their T-shirts. But as the days tick down, what is there to know about the road to election day? What factors will influence your vote? And more importantly—how can you cast a responsible vote?
There are so many questions that plague the minds of many voters, especially young voters. To help you break down these political complexities and the issues that matter most, Channel 5 is bringing you its latest talk show—Powa & Di People. This 90-minute program will debut on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., right after the evening news, and it’s here to tackle those tough questions head-on.
Powa & Di People will air every Tuesday and Thursday leading up to March 11—the eve of Decision 2025 when Belizeans will walk up to the polls and cast the vote that will lead the next 5 years.
Expect lively discussions about the most pressing issues facing Belizeans today. From the economy and job creation to crime, healthcare, education, and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand key topics.
Joining the conversation will be contributors Demmy Williams and Dr. Harold Young, who will provide thoughtful analysis and spark debates on critical matters. But the best part? This isn’t a one-sided show. Your voice matters too! Viewers will be encouraged to actively participate in the discussions, ask questions, and share their views.
Make sure to tune in every Tuesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m., from February 18 through March 11. Powa & Di People is your chance to be part of Belize’s political conversation as we head toward election day 2025.
According to Prime Minister John Briceño, the ongoing redistricting matter before the High Court of Belize is not one of controversy.
Briceno told News Five that those challenging the redistricting efforts could have acted earlier if they were truly concerned. “If these people knew that that’s what they wanted to do, they could have done it a long time ago. I think they started to do this, I believe; you are just trying to get attention when they started to hear that we are going to call elections,” he stated.
The Prime Minister also outlined his position on the timing of the upcoming elections, noting that he had faced significant pressure to call them sooner. “I’ve been under a lot of pressure from last year to call elections, and I’ve been saying no, we’re not going to have elections until 2025,” he explained. “Last year in December, I met with my closest advisors, and we felt that March is a good month. Usually, it’s dry, it’s cool, and people are working. So we felt that that would be a good time to call the elections. And so that’s what we did.”
Briceño responded to attempts to block the elections, expressing his disappointment. “I think it’s unfortunate, but we have followed the law. And as Prime Minister, I have the right to call an election whenever I believe that it is the right time.”
Regarding the redistricting process, the Prime Minister reiterated his commitment to addressing the issue. “I have committed before that one of the priorities of the new government, of the PUP government, when you get in, is to ensure that we could have the redistricting done successfully,” he said.
A legal injunction was filed to halt the upcoming general elections, arguing that the absence of constitutionally required redistricting violates the principle of equal representation. The claimants, including Jeremy Enriquez, contend that proceeding without redrawing electoral boundaries undermines democracy. While the government insists it has met its constitutional obligations with redistricting proposals, the challenge seeks to delay elections until the process is completed.
