People & Places - Channel 5 Belize

Building a Legacy of Kindness with Juan Chuc Hardware

Almost fifty years ago, Juan Chuc started his own hardware store in San Ignacio Town, calling it Juan Chuc & Sons Hardware. It didn’t take long for the store to become one of the biggest locally owned businesses around, cementing Juan Chuc’s legacy in the Cayo District. In today’s episode of Belize on Reel, we had a chat with Chuc to hear the story of how his business took off and what he thinks about the legacy he’s leaving behind.

Britney Gordon, Reporting

It’s 1977, and Juan Chuc has just opened the doors to his very first business, the aptly named Juan Chuc store. What started as a small grocery quickly took off when Chuc decided to branch out into hardware. Before diving into the world of business, Chuc spent over sixteen years working with heavy-duty construction equipment. It was this expertise that helped him transform his store into the well-known Juan Chuc Hardware.

Juan Chuc, Founder, Juan Chuc & Sons Hardware

“Lot of people help me though because I remember when I was selling cement, I couldn’t buy no steel. So an American Jamaican come and live in Santa Elena. He told me I need some steel, man. I tell him I no sell, I only sell cement. He say, how can you buy steel? Why you don’t buy? I tell ah I don’t have no money. He said, how much money you need? I tell him about more or less about ten thousand. He say, I will give you the ten thousand. You buy your steel, you gimme my steel, and then you pay me afterwards. I tell him, really? You will do that? He say, yes. I tell him thank you, and man, gimme the money. So I add one truckload of steel.”

Juan Chuc Hardware quickly became a vital part of the community, helping small businesses with financial opportunities. Eighteen years ago, Chuc’s son commissioned wreath maker Maritza Manzanero, and when Juan saw her beautiful creations, he knew he had to share them with a wider audience.

Maritza Manzanero, Colleague & Friend

“We started chatting and we became good friends and he asked me where I had gotten the wreath from. So I explained to him that I was working with flowers and I started making them. So he said if I would be interested, we could try and place them in his store and sell them. So I spoke with my daddy for the money and my daddy said, well, what you can do is make it for a price, so that he can earn something like a profit. So, I chatted with him and he said, he was so happy with it. So I brought about eighteen wreaths and about two weeks time, I received a phone call that no wreaths were left in the store.”

Things took an unfortunate turn when Chuc contracted COVID and could no longer manage his store. He handed the business over to his sons, but they struggled to keep it afloat, leading to its closure. Undeterred, Chuc kept his entrepreneurial spirit alive by opening a smaller shop, lovingly named Sandy’s Shop after his wife. Through it all, Chuc says his loyal customers have always stood by him.

Juan Chuc

“They always buy with me and they always tell me to keep going. Because they know that I come from working hard in the field, and they know I never have no money and they know how they admire how I’m working and I work good with the people, they help me and I help them. I treat them good. Sometimes when they come, then they buy, and you know the sun hot deh, I bring wa drink. I tell them, unu have this man, take care. Refresh yourself. And when them feel good.”

Chuc’s store has always been a beacon of opportunity for the community, offering hardware supplies at fair prices. Even today, Chuc is one of the few in the area who sells cement by the pound, making it easier for folks to gradually invest in their home projects. The mayor of San Ignacio, Earl Trapp, often highlights the significant impact Chuc has had on the community.

Earl Trapp, Mayor, San Ignacio

“He sells sand by bucket, and, a pvc pipe, the length, he sells it by feet as well. So he makes things affordable for people that only needs three feet of pipe, you don’t wanna buy one length of pipe and then just waste the rest. So when he would make sure that he provides for the needy people. So I think certainly it’s impacted Saint Ignacio Santa Elena and the surrounding villages because, on weekends and even during the week, but especially on weekends, you would see buses park in front of his place and the customers getting their goods by sack and take it into the bus and they would go to the villages. He served the community well.”

While the Juan Chuc store is no longer as big as it once was, the namesake is still well loved.

Maritza Manzanero

“His heart is of gold. Many people have chanced him, I know. And he doesn’t even talk about it. Like he used to have this shop with whatever you needed, like zincs, the roofing things and whatever you need, tiles you would go and he would even give you credit and people like wouldn’t even pay him. And do you think he would be looking for them? He said everything is in God’s hands.”

Chuc says his business is on the rise again, taking him back to the early days of his journey nearly forty-eight years ago. Despite the ups and downs, he’s content with what he’s achieved in his career, even if it’s not quite how everyone remembers it.

Juan Chuc

“It is kinda lee hard, but then like how I was sick to me it is very good for keep moving. I can’t walk, so I keep moving and talk to people, to friends and I feel good with that, because it let’s me to know what is going on out there, because I can’t go there. So I feel very good and my business is growing lee bit by lee bit and. And I don’t want to grow big again, but I just want to survive and have something in my table for eat, so I feel very good.”

Britney Gordon For News Five

New DNA Legislation to Plug Loopholes in Justice System

A new proposed DNA law aims to make cases involving scientific evidence clearer by setting rules for collecting, filing, and using DNA evidence to prosecute suspects. Today, a draft of this legislation was shown to key groups. This draft would let the court decide when a suspect must provide DNA samples for testing in criminal cases. The United Nations Development Program, which held consultations earlier this year, created the draft bill and hosted today’s meeting with forensic experts, prosecutors, police, and the Ministry of Health. News Five’s Marion Ali has the story.

Marion Ali, Reporting

Today, key groups from the justice system met to review a proposed draft law focused on DNA evidence. According to UNDP Representative Amilin Mendez, the goal of the bill is to improve how DNA evidence is collected, filed, and used.

Amilin Mendez, Representative, U.N.D.P.

“With D.N.A legislation in place, it embodies the National Forensic Science Services to be able to create a D.N.A database. What does that mean then for you? If you have a matter on hand, if you’re the victim, you’ll be able to get justice in a more timely manner. If you’re a suspected person of a crime and your D.N.A does not match, you would not have to be on remand because it’s clear that you’re not guilty of any of these crimes.”

The UNDP has been a long-time partner of the National Forensic Science Services. In 2024, the U.N. agency helped upgrade the lab’s information management system, making the evidence process digital. Executive Director Gian Cho explained how the system will work according to international standards once the law is passed by the end of this year.

Gian Cho, Executive Director, Belize National Forensic Science Service

“When you collect people’s genetic data, when you store it, when you search it, we need to make sure that we have regulations or laws in place that governs how that’s used. So how a national D.N.A. database is established, how D.N.A. samples are collected from individuals suspected of committing offenses in a manner that respects their bodily integrity, their privacy, their dignity, how searches of that database is conducted, who has access to the database, what we do with any matches that come from the database, who are authorized to enter profiles into a database, how profiles are generated – all of these requirements to ensure that the safeguard of human genetic data, the standards of searching and how we determine a match are in line with the international requirements and what we know other countries have in their legislation as well as oversight for such a database.”

Cho explained that even though the system will be in place, for investigators to get certain DNA samples from suspects, a judge would have to decide whether the sample will be given by force. Cho emphasized that it’s crucial to ensure people’s constitutional rights are respected throughout the process.

Gian Cho

“The process or the procedure to obtain a D.N.A. sample from an individual, when consent is not given by the individual, what would be the processes that the authorities follow would be to obtain a court order. Once certain thresholds are met, the investigator – a senior rank inspector or above would have to issue or make the request to a magistrate to issue a court order to collect a D.N.A. sample the person does not give consent.”

Ultra-sensitive issues, such as how minors are treated, whether they are the victim or the perpetrator, are also covered in the legislation.

Gian Cho

“When minors are victims or when minors are suspects or when appearance of minors might be involved we have to look at court orders given individual. And the bill speaks all of those different circumstances when a court order would be needed, or what would be considered reasonable cause to obtain a court order, what would be instances where reasonable force can be used to obtain the D.N.A. sample and in most instances, it would be a cheek swab that is obtained.”

It’s still unclear if this new legislation will boost conviction rates. The reform of the justice system through this bill is just one part of a larger project called pH Justice, supported by the UNDP and funded by the European Union, with a budget of over three million dollars. This project also included digitizing the Magistrates’ and High Courts. Once the relevant parties agree on the draft bill’s contents, it will be presented to Cabinet for approval before going to the National Assembly. Marion Ali for News Five.

Luis Marin Gunned Down in Majestic Alley Home

Today, a family is heartbroken after twenty-four-year-old Luis Marin was tragically shot and killed in his home in Majestic Alley. According to the police, around ten p.m., Marin was hanging out with a family member in his apartment when a man approached and opened fire, fatally wounding Marin. The police arrived at the scene around a few minutes later and found Marin’s lifeless body. He was rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, but sadly, he was pronounced dead on arrival. There are whispers that this murder might be connected to the weekend shooting of Jamal Hyde in Belmopan, which has already led to several arrests. However, the police have yet to confirm the speculation.

Government Employee Charged for Stealing 43 Chromebooks

A government employee is in hot water, accused of stealing forty-three Chromebooks from the Government Bookstore on Saint Joseph Street back in February. A police investigation led to the discovery of nine of the devices all the way in Orange Walk. This morning, Ezbert Felix Ramclam Junior, also known as ‘Suga,’ a warehouse manager for the G.O.B., was arraigned in the Belize City Magistrate’s Court on Coney Drive on a single charge of theft. The allegations state that between February eighteenth and February twenty-eighth, 2025, in Belize City, Ramclam dishonestly appropriated forty-three laptops valued at thirty-three thousand, eight hundred and sixty-two dollars, belonging to the Government of Belize. Represented by attorney Ronnell Gonzalez, Ramclam Junior pleaded not guilty to the charge. With no objection to bail, the magistrate granted it at three thousand dollars, plus one surety of the same amount, or two sureties of one thousand, five hundred dollars each, which he met. Ramclam Junior is due back in court on June fourth, 2025. On Saturday, March twenty-ninth, 2025, Ingrid Acosta, a project coordinator at the Project Execution Unit in the Ministry of Education in Belmopan, reported to the Crimes Investigation Branch that unauthorized persons had removed forty-three Chromebooks from a storage facility at the Government Bookstore compound in Belize City between February nineteenth and February twenty-eighth, 2025. The C.I.B. investigated and on Wednesday, April second, police recovered three of the devices in San Lorenzo Housing Site in Orange Walk Town. Further investigation led to the discovery of five more Lenovo Chromebooks, confirmed to have been stolen from the Government Bookstore’s warehouse. The laptops were taken to Belize City and handed over to the police. As part of the investigation, police recorded several statements from individuals in Belize City and Orange Walk. One report from a fifty-nine-year-old entrepreneur in Orange Walk stated that a man known as ‘Suga,’ who works at the Government Bookstore, sold him nine Chromebooks in February 2025. Consequently, Ramclam was detained on Monday, April seventh, 2025, and charged with theft on Tuesday, April eighth, 2025.

Leroy Almendarez is a C.E.O. Once Again

Today, it was announced that Doctor Leroy Almendarez has been named the new Chief Executive Officer in the Ministry of Public Utilities, Energy, and Logistics. This news comes less than three months after Almendarez stepped down as C.E.O. of the Social Security Board, a position he held for just four months. Governor General Dame Froyal Tzalam appointed him on the advice of Prime Minister John Briceño. Before his brief stint at the S.S.B., Almendarez spent six years as the Executive Director of the Belize Trade and Investment Development Service (BELTRAIDE). Although the reason for his sudden departure from the S.S.B. was never disclosed, Almendarez did say that his time there was, quote, “a pleasure and something I embraced with vigour,” end quote.

2025 Election Delays Progress on Maya Land Consult Order

This week, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) held a virtual hearing with the Government of Belize and the Maya Leaders Alliance to check in on the progress of the Maya Land Rights Consent Order. This order, agreed upon in 2015, aims to recognize the land rights of the indigenous Maya people. Lead government attorney Andrew Marshalleck provided an update on how things have been moving forward since the last hearing in late January.

Andrew Marshalleck, Lead Government Attorney

“The National Assembly was dissolved on the eleventh February, just days after the draft was presented to the Cabinet subcommittee. The result is that they have not looked at it and have not reverted. The general elections were held on on March twelfth, and on March seventeeth, a new minister responsible for Indigenous Peoples Affairs was appointed. I managed to meet with him on Friday and briefed him as to where we are. He brings a new perspective and new energy to the effort. But he reminded me, and he’s right, that having been previously a minister of state that he was not in cabinet when all the briefings surrounding this issue were presented to that body. So we’ve had to start process of bringing him up to speed on everything. And we hope to accomplish that this week. The ministry is still without a Chief Executive Officer, but we expect one to be appointed. Shortly, our points of contact haven’t yet been completely established. The previous chief executive officer has been accommodating on a request to put us in touch with the new minister, but that is transitional. The three deliverables remain deliverables is the long and short of that. We will have to try to get those papers before what I expect will possibly be a new cabinet subcommittee as soon as we’re able to. And the next step is, remains, the next steps remain the same, but the elections have intervened and have caused delays.”

Concerned Villagers Report Land Violations at Golden Stream

More updates to come out of the CCJ hearing between the Government of Belize and the Maya Leaders Alliance were the concerns of land violations in Golden Stream Village, Toledo District. Court Authority Rosa Solario explained that she requested documentation from the government relating to concerns of violations in Golden Stream Village.

Rosa Solario, Court Authority

“They are very focused on encroaching activity, which began on December twenty-ninthth of 2024 by third parties without their prior consent, prior consent of the village and there’s a number of allegations. I mean, there’s land clearing, there’s registering interest in land, trespassing on land, but also destruction of property. And the complaint addresses seven thousand acres in the village of Golden Stream. And this is all on the part of third parties as background, your honors. This is the second complaint that I have received related to the Golden Stream Village. The first one, I issued a report on June eighteenth, 2020, and it was a similar complaint in the sense that it was dealing with a license permit that was actually granted to conduct salvage logging in the Golden Stream River without consultation and consent. And when I actually visited the villages in 2020, this was actually one of the villages that I had the opportunity to visit as well. in terms of what would be great to hear from the government or know from the government when they, when they share their response or information or relevant documents, one is whether there has been any sort of investigation on the title or licenses that are at issue. This complaint, basically like the circumstances around these activities and also whether they communicated the existence of Maya land rights right before granting this title or license. And one concern that I have looking at the complaint is that it shouldn’t be up to third parties. You know, whether they decide whether the CCJ consent order applies to them or not. I mean, this is something that we would want the government to inform third parties before granting any sort of title or licenses.”

Youth and Sports Budget Passed by National Assembly

On the Open Your Eyes Morning Show on Tuesday, Devin Daly, the new Minister of State in the Ministry of Youth and Sports, emphasized the need for more efficiency within the ministry. He dropped some big news about the current budget and hinted at changes to the staff structure. His comments have sparked quite a buzz among youth advocates, sports fans, and the Public Service Union. Everyone seems to agree that the Department of Youth Services and the National Sports Council need a major revamp. But the P.S.U. insists that any changes must be carefully planned to avoid hurting real people. Meanwhile, youth advocates are pushing for more inclusion and a stronger commitment to investing in sports and developing athletes. News Five’s Paul Lopez dives into the details.

Paul Lopez, Reporting

On Tuesday morning, Devin Daly, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Youth and Sports, stirred up quite a bit of controversy. He revealed that the Ministry of Youth and Sports has to split a budget of seven and a half million dollars.

Devin Daly, Minister of State, Ministry of Youth and Sports (File: April 8^th, 2025)

“The reality is we have accessible to us, about seven and a half million between youth and sports. However, seven out of that seven and a half million is on salaries. We are using five hundred thousand between youth and sports to really bring program work.”

But this isn’t breaking news. What Minister Daly mentioned is actually outlined in the Government of Belize’s approved 2024/2025 budget. A whopping ninety-five percent of the just over eight million dollars is allocated to recurrent expenses like salaries, travel, subsistence, materials, supplies, and operational costs. That leaves only about five percent, or five hundred thousand dollars, for rehabilitation programs, skills training, and maintaining sports facilities.

Devin Daly

“I don’t really believe that any taxpayer would be satisfied with getting that amount for sports and youth work within this country.”

Daly’s comments come just four weeks after he stepped into his new role as the junior minister in the Ministry of Youth and Sports, alongside Minister Anthony Mahler. With his background in professional sports and youth development, Daly is seen as a great fit for the job. Now, the challenge is to figure out how to run these important portfolios more efficiently and effectively. According to Ishmael Nicholson, the Commonwealth Youth Ambassador to Belize, youth participation in all areas of governance has nearly disappeared.

Ishmael Nicholson, Commonwealth Youth Ambassador to Belize

“In economics we learn that at a certain point where you have so much employees that the efficiency will continue to decrease. So, in economics we learn that more employees, less efficiency. So if the ministry believes that we have to cut to create more efficiency, and of course if we do it in a practical and proper way through its evaluation and assessments then I believe the youths will back it up, one hundred percent.”

A closer look at the five hundred thousand dollars earmarked for youth and sports investments reveals that no funds were allocated for youth development services in 2024, nor for youth programs and initiatives. The Youth for the Future Participation in Governance line item also got zero dollars. But what can you really expect from a budget that’s stretched so thin?

Ishmael Nicholson

“The most important thing that is missing for the ministry, beside the budget, is the national youth policy, which is the foundation for which the department will create the strategy for it to create more opportunities for growth for young people. So without that the department does not have a proper strategy to engage young people properly because that strategy is absent and youths are not involved within the department effectively and meaningfully we create youths becoming at risk in which we are suppose to prevent youths from becoming at risk youths.”

The sports budget paints a similar picture. Not a single dollar was set aside for youth programs and initiatives. Instead, more money was allocated for buying furniture and equipment—forty-six thousand dollars—than for maintaining sports facilities, which only got forty thousand dollars. This has resulted in poorly maintained facilities across the country and a serious lack of investment in athlete development.

Devin Daly

“As a government, our job is too fold, making sure that facilities is upkept and kept to a certain standard and work with the federation to ensure that the competition and development side of youth sports and senior sports is caried out. One of the things that is dear to me is to make sure we keep these facilities to a certain standard and we have to apply pressure and ensure the federation are carrying out tournaments in the facilities we provide.”

But with the way the current budget for youth and sports is set up, there’s no financial wiggle room to boost youth involvement in governance through the DYS or to improve the maintenance of sports facilities. Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.

Will Cutting Staff Increase Efficiency at DYS and NSC?

So, the 2024-2025 budget has highlighted some serious financial gaps in the Ministry of Youth and Sports. The big question now is, how are they planning to fix this in the new term? One idea on the table is to bump up the budget. But will that really plug the leaks? Another, more likely, proposal is to cut down the number of employees in the Department of Youth Services and the National Sports Council. The Public Service Union is clear about this: if job cuts are going to happen, there needs to be thorough consultations and a real understanding of how it will affect those who lose their jobs. News Five’s Paul Lopez has the details.

Paul Lopez, Reporting

The Department of Youth Services and the National Sports Council have been working with an eight-million-dollar budget, but ninety-five percent of that goes to recurring expenses like salaries. This leaves just five percent for youth and sports development, which Minister of State Devin Daly and youth advocates say is far from enough. One proposed solution is to increase the budget allocation for the new fiscal year to better support these crucial programs.

Devin Daly, Minister of State, Ministry of Youth and Sports (File: April 8^th, 2025)

“Before we look at an increase in budget, we have to look at the reality of what we can do with this money and the only thing that I can say at this time is more monies need to go into facilities development and also sports and youth development , and I know that is something that both directors believe and agree with. So, if the ministers and both directors agree then the necessary changes need to be made.”

According to the Public Service Union, these changes will likely result in a thirty percent staff cut between the two entities. PSU President Dean Flowers acknowledges the reasoning behind this move but emphasizes the need for transparency throughout the process.

Dean Flowers, President, P.S.U.

“What prompted our response was led first and foremost by the concerns brought to our attention by affected staff members who called into a meeting and informed that some of them will be without a job in the coming days. We do have members particularly in the Department of Youth Services. We do recognize the rationale. I think that it is no secret that across the public service there is great inefficiencies, inefficiencies created by the very politicians that we elect each and every election cycle. So if it is there will be an attempt to fix those, it has to be done comprehensively. It has to be done recognizing we are dealing with people.”

The union argues that letting go of a hundred employees without first tackling the long-standing inefficiencies, alleged corruption, and potential ‘ghost workers’ would be detrimental.

Dean Flowers

“The term ghost workers would have become famous, maybe eight years ago when we recognized that where the government payroll is concerned, a lot of people are on the payroll who have not worked a day within the public service. There are files in the public service that simply have an employment letter in there. These are files opened years ago, people who are on the payroll. It has an employment letter. That approval has been given for John X. He does not take vacation leave, does not take sick leave. There is absolutely nothing else in John X files other than approval that was given by the ministry of finance for him to be employed in an open vote capacity.”

According to Daly, the ministry’s approach is not simply about taking jobs away from people, but rather to create greater efficiency within the Department of Youth Services and the National Sports Council. Daly points out that many of these employees have been around since before the current administration took office.

Devin Daly

“We are about continuity and about finding the most effective unit and team to carry out the new mandate. When we look at the staff, a majority of these staff predates this administration. We have staff that is there for twenty something years, fifteen something years, and that is the majority at both of the organizations. So politics aside, which it is never aside, it is a problem that the precious administration never addressed.”

Dean Flowers

“You cannot have efficiency if you have a work force that is not contended or working under fear. So they must be a consultation. There must be inclusion in the decision making process so that you have buy in. But also there must be the safeguarding of people’s livelihood to the greatest extent that we possibly can preserve that. That is the angle we are coming from. We are not here to stop the necessary overhaul that is needed within these two department, or the wider public service on a whole but we believe the approach being taken is not inline with best human resource practices.”

Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez

P.S.U. Calls for Greater Dilligence in G.O.B. Budgeting

As the National Assembly prepares for the budget presentation and debate ahead of the new fiscal year, there’s a lot of chatter about how the Ministry of Youth and Sports is being funded. This has led to some serious questions about the whole budget preparation process. Dean Flowers, the President of the Public Service Union, isn’t holding back—he argues that there’s not enough seriousness when it comes to putting these budgets together.

Dean Flowers, President, P.S.U.

“I do not engage in the budgetary exercises. I think that the public service union has consistently stated that there is little seriousness given to the preparation of these budgets. I know the approach has changed to the performance based. But if you look at all the budgets of the last twenty or ten years, not much has changed in terms of the program budgeting. I want to draw an analysis of the budget presented by the office of the auditor general. You will see that anything hardly change in that budget year after year, after year. The department’s targets or the personnel, it is just a cut and paste exercise. I say that to say that where the proposed budget for youths and sports is concerned, it might have had anything to do with what is being depicted int eh budget. It is just numbers throwing out there and no real analysis as to whether these things are actually needed or these cost area actually needed or going to the line items to which they are airmarked. This is a failure of the past auditor general to conduct audits of these ministries to ensure that what was approved was being spent for that they were approved for.”