Belize District - Channel 5 Belize

Kaya Aspires to a Seat in Central Government

On March sixth, Kaya Cattouse was elected, along with ten other P.U.P. candidates, for a third consecutive term at City Hall. But is her attempt at running for a seat in the House of Representatives a disservice to the masses of Belize City voters who cast a ballot in her favor during the last municipal elections? Kaya began by sizing up her political opponent in Albert, before speaking of her plan to transition to central government.

Kaya Cattouse, P.U.P. Candidate, Albert

“Going into a constituency or choosing a constituency, you don’t do this based on the opponent and while she may be a formidable opponent and is a two-time [area representative], I believe that I can come into this constituency with what I bring, the knowledge and the experience working at the local government level and for me it’s about a new drive, a new perspective, you know, wanting to give the people what we see they need and we believe that under a PUP banner, with a PUP minister, we can do this. My main goal is service to the community, service to the residents and I want to do this to the best of my ability and I want to make a commitment and dedicate to the residents whether it be at a local government level, at a municipal level or at the constituency level. So, the bottom line is service to the community, regardless of the level that we’re doing it. Working at the Belize City Council at the municipal level, I have been able to work across ten different constituencies, yes, the results were resoundingly reassuring at the polls both times. However, I believe that there is a transition period that everybody goes through and you come into local government with aspirations to move on to central government.”

Isani Cayetano

“Nonetheless, you would still be shortchanging the residents of Belize City who voted for you for a three-year term. If elections are called in 2025, that’s only one year into the term. They will say, well, look, we voted for the entirety of the term and not necessarily for one-third of it.”

Kaya Cattouse

“Belizeans, or the residents of Belize City will definitely not be shortchanged. We have a well-rounded team at the Belize City Council. Should I be successful at my bid for the Albert constituency, I believe that our city will be left in very capable hands.”

Three Months Later, Still No E-Buses Running

It’s been three months since the first e-bus arrived in Belize and the fanfare that accompanied that arrival has not followed through with the scheduled rollout of the pilot project. Since then, a second e-bus has arrived in country. The Belize City Council will oversee two buses running city routes and, prior to the municipal elections, was planning those routes, as well as a media tour. But there’s been no finalization of that plan and the forty-seven-passenger maximum capacity buses are still parked today. This morning, News Five asked the Minister of Transport, Rodwell Ferguson for an update on the e-buses. He said that the Belize City operations will begin shortly, and that more e-buses will arrive for the long-awaited western and northern routes.

Rodwell Ferguson, Minister of Transport

“Operations will start early in June. As a matter of fact, I’m having a management meeting tomorrow to decide exactly what date. Operation will start in Belize City in particular. It will be a special route for the E-buses to run in Belize City, and then hopefully by July, August, three more will come in to run on the Northern Highway and likewise on the Western Highway. That is the beginning of E-buses in the country of Belize. We are now negotiating with the European Union through the UNDP. Hopefully within a year or two we should get another 46 EV buses to run across the highway. So I’m quite sure that this is the beginning, and while we have some buses on the highway that are inadequate, now I have to have a little bit of caution and be conscious of the people because if I put pressure on them to get brand new buses now, then by 2030 the world is going EV. So we’re hopeful that we can facilitate them through grant funding and partial payment by them to be able to participate in this new dimension.”

Reporter

“What do you know about customers being able to reserve seats on the bus? Is this allowed?

Rodwell Ferguson

“I know Floralia has a system in place, I think James also has a system in place, and hopefully, once the ministry gets its ticketing system, then customers will be able to reserve seats across the country, and buses, when the bus come, they’ll have your seat for you.”

Reporter

“So you can reserve seats?”

Rodwell Ferguson

“Yes, you can reserve seats.”

K.H.M.H. Talks Improvement Strategies with Cabinet

The Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital is strategizing ways to further improve its services to the public. Tuesday at the cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister John Briceño, K.H.M.H. C.E.O. Chandra Cansino made a presentation in which she provided an update on the status of the institution and discussed ways to enhance and improve service to Belizeans. The areas the hospital is looking to further develop include oncology, cardiology, and other specialized services. Cansino stressed that as both a regional hospital and the nation’s only public tertiary hospital, it is necessary that that standard of care be ever improving. In recent months, the K.H.M.H. has made multiple renovations to the facilities and received donations of medical supplies and equipment as a part of this mission.

Vega’s Distributors Limited Donates Bug Sprays and Cash to Belize Red Cross

Vega’s Distributors Limited handed over the equivalent of four thousand dollars in cash and products to the Belize Red Cross. Fifteen days away from the start of the hurricane season, the Belize Red Cross is gathering resources for its 2024 disaster relief efforts. Today, they received several boxes of bug sprays and two thousand dollars cash from Vega’s Distributors Limited. We were at the handing over ceremony this morning, where we heard more about how these resources will be put into use.

Osborn Collins, Sales and Marketing Manager, Vegas Distributors

“Over the years the Red Cross has been synonymous with service to the community, especially in time of disaster. In reviewing the list of donors recipients, the Belize Red Cross stood out because of the many years of Service. The McBride Caribbean Limited whose headquarters is in Barbados and the factory of BOP insect spray, at Vega Distributors we have the BOP original, however all the BOP products can be found in all supermarkets across Belize. On behalf of the management of Vegas Distributors as the official distributors in Belize. WE are handing over these nineteen cases of BOP products valued about two thousand dollars along with two thousand dollars in cash to the Belize Red Cross.”

Monica Herredia, Volunteer Manager, Belize Red Cross

“This donation comes in handy because it is the start of our preparation for Hurricane season and we really, we want to have everything in place. We have started procurement and getting everything in place for the hurricane season. Of course, we don’t want to have a hurricane come to Belize but we have to be prepared. So, this donation means a lot in terms of prepared in case there is a dengue outbreak in Belize.”

Police Inspector Charged with Wounding Detainee

An inspector of police finds himself on the opposite side of the law tonight as he faces a charge of Wounding. Christopher Martinez is accused of wounding Aaron Flowers while he was detained on June nineteenth of last year. Today Martinez asked the court for a sentence indication on grounds that he is contemplating pleading guilty. He will get that indication on May twenty-third, when he can decide if he still wants to plead guilty or whether he wants to take his chances at trial. Martinez remains on active duty with the Special Patrol Unit, pending the outcome of his criminal case. The allegation against him is that in June of 2023, Martinez wounded a businessman whom he beat up while he was detained inside a holding cell. It is alleged that Martinez took the padlock from the cell area and inflicted injuries to Flowers’ head. Martinez appeared in court today in the presence of his attorney, Andrew Bennett, while the Crown was represented by the D.P.P., Cheryl-Lynn Vidal. The request for a sentence indication today was a turn of events because Martinez had maintained his innocence and at his arraignment almost a year ago. The victim, Aaron Flowers, was present to testify against Martinez, but again the matter was adjourned for another in a series of adjournments over the year. Issues discussed before the adjournment included what sentencing is the Crown seeking for the crime should Martinez plead guilty; what were the injuries sustained by the victim and what was used to inflict the injury; and the fact that the defendant is a police officer. The D.P.P. indicated that the Prosecution is expecting a just sentence, which may not necessarily mean a custodial sentence. A video footage shows that Martinez removed a pad lock from the cell block area and that was he used to assault Flowers with.

General Legal Council Sanctions Attorney Bryan Neal

Attorney Bryan Neal has been sanctioned by the General Legal Council to pay a fine of three thousand, five hundred dollars after it was found that he breached several rules of the legal profession. Neal appeared before the G.L.C. following a complaint by a former client accusing him of professional misconduct. He was later found guilty. On March, twenty-ninth, 2023, Mr. Jinyue Young retained the services of Bryan Neal to recover possession of his property in Burrell Boom and paid Neal five thousand dollars. The services were never rendered, neither did Neal communicate to Young that he was unable to act on his behalf, despite collecting the monies. The fine must be paid within thirty days to the Registrar of the High Court.

“Kaya Fi Di Alberts”

Belize City Councilor Kaya Cattouse has officially declared her candidacy for the Albert constituency. Cattouse has been serving as a city councilor for the past three terms. She took to social media today to say quote, “over the past four years, I have witnessed the challenges facing the Albert Constituency, and I’m more determined than ever to lead us back to our blue roots. Together, we can ensure a P.U.P. victory and pave the way for a better quality of life for all Albert residents by uniting under the P.U.P. banner and ensuring that no one is left behind”, unquote. Cattouse is the only P.U.P. hopeful to date that has publicly declared her interest to run in the Albert Division. If another person chooses to submit their standard bearer application, then the party will certainly have to decide whether they will endorse a candidate or hold a convention. The P.U.P.’s deadline for application submission is at the end of May. We will continue to follow.

Kaya Wants to Represent Albert

Belize City Councillor Kaya Cattouse announced a few minutes ago her candidature for the Albert Constituency. In a post, Cattouse said, “I’ve witnessed the challenges facing the Albert Constituency, and I’m more determined than ever to lead us back to our blue roots.”

She promises “a better quality of life for all Albert residents” if she is successful.

The current area representative is Tracy Taegar Panton.

Bowen & Bowen Faces Beverage Supply Disruptions Due to Power Issues

Bowen & Bowen Limited issued a release earlier today, saying it is facing temporary disruptions in beverage production due to recent power challenges from CFE. B&B says that it is working with Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) and the broader community. The company says it is voluntarily reducing its power usage at BEL’s request to help ensure a stable electricity supply for residential areas and other critical services.

In its statement, BEL said “While reducing power usage has caused temporary availability issues for certain products, it is necessary to support continuous power availability to households and critical services. We understand this has caused an inconvenience for our customers and consumers, but we assure you that this is a temporary situation.”

According to BEL, these power reductions coincide with scheduled maintenance on its production lines and backup generators, further impacting its production capabilities. BEL says it is working diligently to complete this maintenance as quickly as possible.

Shooting in Ladyville

Twenty-six-year-old Frank Young was shot last night in Ladyville Village. Investigators say that Young was shot while walking on the Philip Goldson Highway. He was injured in the right arm and leg. According to Young, he heard gunshots and later realised he was shot. He was taken to the hospital, where he remains in stable condition.