2024-04-16 - Channel 5 Belize

Newly Appointed CA Faces Pushback from Six Councilors

Only one day after his appointment became official, incoming City Administrator Albert Vaughn is under fire from within the newly elected Belize City Council. Of note is that several of those councilors, including Deputy Mayor Allan Pollard Junior, were his colleagues during the previous term of office. Six of ten councilors have written to Mayor Bernard Wagner registering their discontent with Vaughn’s selection. The letter begins by saying, “we write with grave concern regarding the purported appointment of Albert Vaughn as the City Administrator for Belize City”. In the letter, the councilors cite section thirteen of the Belize City Council Act which states that the council shall appoint a suitably qualified person as city administrator. The letter further notes that the executive arm of the council, the caucus, has not met to debate any recommendations for appointment, nor has any resolution been circulated to members regarding the appointment of a city administrator. All things considered; the six councilors referred to Vaughn’s appointment as unlawful. They requested a meeting of the council to debate the appointment of a city administrator. On Monday, News Five spoke with Vaughn and asked him about the experience he garnered as a councilor, as well as his qualifications, that equip him for the role. Here is what he told us.

Albert Vaughn, Newly Appointed City Administrator

“During my term as a councilor I have served in various capacities that has made me work very closely with the professional people at the Belize City Council in all areas. I believe that the former city administrator and I have a very close working relationship. I can safely say that I was part of her advising team here during my time as a councilor here. I have been to all this city council during the six years, I have been at works, traffic. I am comfortable and one of the major themes is in the finance department where you have to physically go in there and work with the finance team. I have run committee here in this council right. I have worked and I believe that I bring that experience to the table to help the mayor and the city.”

PM Briceno Remains Neutral in City Administrator Chaos

This morning, Prime Minister John Briceño commented on the controversial appointment of former councilor Albert Vaughn as CitCo’s new city administrator. While he was clear in stating that he does not intervene in decisions taken at the municipal level, he was optimistic that the matter would be resolved by day’s end.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“I’ve always said this, that these issues are the decision of the council and we can only advise. As I know, most of the PUP representatives in Belize City, I think, probably, at least four of them are supporting, five of them are supporting Albert Vaughn. But again, that’s a matter for the council and I’m hoping that somehow this will be resolved today.”

Reporter

“Who are you supporting as prime minister?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“I don’t think that’s for me, who to support. I will work with whomsoever the council decides that they want to have as the city manager.”

Reporter

“Do you find is a political embarrassment considering [that] it’s a month after the elections and there’s this fight going on when this isn’t what the voters voted for?

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Well not necessarily. The voters voted for councilors that are going to represent their interests and if the councilors believe that they want somebody else then that’s their right. I wished we could have done it better, of course, but it’s not a matter that, oh, I’m upset or whatever. It is a part of the democratic process.”

Shyne Barrow: “I expect more of this to come.”

Weighing in on the internal row at City Hall, Opposition Leader Shyne Barrow told reporters earlier today that the question of Vaughn’s qualifications is relevant because he seemingly lacks the requirements for the post of city administrator.

Shyne Barrow, Leader of the Opposition

“As far as that is concerned, again, another failed promise to deliver on good governance and transparency, and this is not coming from a political, partisan figure. This is coming from the six councilors that have written to the mayor denouncing this appointment because of qualifications. Certainly, Albert Vaughn served as a councilor. He served as a member of the BDF, but other than that, I don’t know what qualifications he has to serve as city administrator, to deal with the finances of the city and it is not an instance where he is an elected member of the house and, let’s say, you are elected prime minister, you automatically become Minister of Finance and you have technocrats there to guide you. Certainly, where the councilors themselves are telling you that they question the qualifications of Mr. Vaughn and they question the process by which the mayor has gone about appointing a crony. This is certainly a sad day for the municipality, but no different than what has been going on. We saw this with Sharon Palacio in Belmopan and we saw a division in Punta Gorda, and I spoke of the conflict between the deputy mayor and the current mayor leading up to the municipal elections. So I expect more of this to come.”

Is There Transparency and Democracy at City Hall?

Referring to the letter sent to Mayor Wagner by the majority councilors, the Leader of the Opposition also says that transparency and democracy are also being called into question, based on the unilateral decision to appoint Vaughn as the new city administrator.

Shyne Barrow, Leader of the Opposition

“I do believe that when six councilors, that is the majority, that is the letter that I saw, six councilors object to Mr. Vaughn. I think that speaks volumes as to where they are as far as transparency, as far as democracy and having the majority have a say and what that reflects is a dictatorship. So di boss seh, Briceno di boss seh, goh with Vaughn cause da Vaughn is team us and we wah run over everybody else. That’s what it seems like to me when six councilors, I mean, my goodness. But again, why am I complaining because for us it’s good. Albert Vaughn is going to be a disaster at City Hall. But again, that’s selfish. The citizens, the only reason I am commenting, for the residents of Belize City it will be a disaster. And so, my political selfishness aside, I prefer that someone be there that actually does good. Again, maybe I am not a conventional politician, but I actually want the government to succeed. I want the municipal bodies to succeed regardless of their political affiliation because that benefit’s the people of Belize.”

Former Junior College Honour Student Slain

A man was shot and killed in the Lake Independence area of Belize City on Monday night. The incident happened in front of an apartment complex shortly before eight p.m. on Flamboyant Street near its intersection with Mahogany Street. The victim is Michael Usher, a resident of the Majestic Alley area. Police are investigating the motive behind the killing, but notably, the Belize Police Department instituted a State of Emergency in March to reduce the level of gang-related violence in Belize City. And from all indications, this latest murder was the result of gang rivalry that spans two neighborhoods which are geographically distant. News Five’s Marion Ali has the story.

Marion Ali, Reporting

This was how residents of Flamboyant Street found thirty-three-year-old Michael Usher after he was shot sometime before eight on Monday night. The Pinks Alley resident was reportedly heading towards Mahogany Street on foot when he came under gunfire. A young man approached him from behind and shot Usher as he reached in front of this apartment complex.

Residents would not speak to us on record but indicated that they were inside their homes when they heard as many as six shots ring out. When the shooting subsided, they ventured outside and saw Usher, fatally wounded, lying on the concrete. The police, in a press release, informed that upon their arrival at the scene, Usher appeared motionless and that he was pronounced dead on arrival at the K.H.M.H.

This morning when we visited the location, bloodstains were still visible where Usher fell and took his final breath. Usher attended Wesley Junior College from 2007 to 2010, was the president of the student council government at the high school and was also reportedly an honour student. But what he did upon his graduation is anyone’s guess. In April 2022, he was the victim of a shooting along with two others, while on Handyside Street. At that time, there were two assailants on a motorcycle who targeted the trio. Police have not indicated whether they have detained anyone for this latest homicide. Marion Ali for News Five.

Two Persons Wanted for Questioning in Placencia Murder

On Sunday, a murder in Placencia sent shockwaves across the peaceful coastal community, as family and friends mourned the loss of thirty-three-year-old Roy Burgess. Reports are that Burgess was inside his vehicle on mile twenty-two along the Placencia Road with a female companion, Maia James, when they were approached by a male suspect who opened fire on the unsuspecting pair. James, who was shot in the face, is still recovering and seeking financial assistance from the public for her medical expenses. Unfortunately, Burgess succumbed to his injuries that day. In relation to the incident, two persons are being sought for questioning by the police. They are thirty-one-year-old Ellis Meighan and twenty-nine-year-old Joseph Vaccaro. Both men are known to the police.

Will SOE Be Extended and Expanded?

When a state of emergency was introduced three weeks ago, there was talk that it would be extended and expanded to include other areas as the police department saw fit. Monday’s murder of Michael Usher, who lived in the vicinity of Majestic Alley but was shot and killed near Mahogany Street, means that the police department may have to re-strategize so as to prevent retaliation among those rival groups. This was the scope of the SOE as it applied to those areas in Belize City back in March, as explained by Commissioner of Police Chester Williams.

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police (File: March 26th, 2024)

“The police and the B.D.F. are on operations within, not just the Antelope area, but practically the entire south side Belize City. As you would be aware by now, a state of emergency was declared this morning covering the almost entire south side of Belize city…Here in Belize City, you know that we have had a slate of shootings, two of which were fatal…The truth is we have seen a long lull Belize City. Again, I always say it takes one idiot to pull a trigger and that could cause a flare-up. And these flare-ups are going to happen occasionally, and we have to be able to have the right approach in dealing with it. As I have said to the minister when we discussed the SOE that it had reached a stage where if we don’t do something, then the cancer is going to spread further and then the other gangs are going to feel like, oh, over there it’s flaring up and nothing’s been done to them, so better we have our own thing so we have to ensure that we do something that is measurable and that is going to bring some calm.”

Leader of the Opposition Criticizes PM for “Failed” SOE

Meanwhile, the Leader of the Opposition, Moses “Shyne” Barrow has slammed the government, and more directly the prime minister, for what he calls an ineffective state of emergency. Today, Barrow pointed to murders that have happened while the S.O.E. has been in place. Barrow also blasts PM John Briceño as chair of the National Security Commission, which he also believes has been ineffective when it comes to fighting crime.

Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Leader of the Opposition

“I don’t recall over the last 15 years at least that there has ever been a situation where the government has declared a state of emergency and we have had this amount of murder take place. I’d like to quote, the learned or some would say unlearned Prime Minister John Briceno. It is apparent that our government has no real solution to solving crime. Nowhere was this more evident than in this was during the UDP era when the Government declared a state of emergency on the people of the south side of Belize City, which did not result in any lasting peace. The sad, tragic irony of this is under the state of emergency, I believe, the first day or day after the state of emergency was declared, we had a murder. The Minister of Police is failing. We have been saying that for the last three years, the prime minister as the chair of the National Security Commission is failing. The fact of the matter is since the government, the PUP government declared a state of emergency, we’ve had more murders than I believe at any time that the state of emergency has been declared.”

Tourist Dies While Snorkeling Near Glover Reef

An American retiree has died while snorkeling near the Glover Reef Atolls. On April fifteenth, the unresponsive body of seventy-four-year-old Kent Hills Foster was taken to the Southern Regional Hospital Morgue in Dangriga Town, where he was identified by his wife, Pamela Gay Fairley. Reports are that the two had been vacationing in Belize, having arrived on April tenth, and while snorkeling on the fifteenth, Foster started experiencing complications. His wife attempted to assist him but was unable to. Foster lost consciousness and the captain of the catamaran, who the couple had chartered, performed CPR but was also unsuccessful in his efforts. He was taken to the Southern Regional Hospital where he was pronounced dead at twelve twenty-six p.m. While a port mortem exam is still pending, Foster’s medical records showed that he had Aortic Dissection, which is a rare but deadly condition where the inner layer of the aorta tears and blood flows between the layers, weakening the artery wall. Foster had undergone treatment for this condition three weeks prior to his passing. An initial investigation revealed no signs of foul play at this time.

PM Comments on Addition of New Junior Ministers

On April third, Prime Minister John Briceño announced new portfolio assignments, as well as the appointments of three additional ministers of state, including Alex Balona, Marconi Leal Senior, and Jorge Espat. In the wake of that announcement, the opposition has been critical of the decision to include more junior ministers as part of the Briceño administration. This morning, when we caught up with the prime minister, we asked him about the recent changes.

Isani Cayetano

“You’ve expanded the number of junior ministers in government. How do you respond to the criticism levied by the United Democratic Party, in terms of the specific roles of these ministers of state?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Well I think [that] they are the last to be able to talk because of what they did when they were in government. The point that I was trying to make is that, first of all, it does not cost much to the voters or the taxpayers. Why? Because they have been chairpersons of house committees and that had a, because of that they had to increase their salaries. Now that they have become ministers of state, that is going to be reduced so that they don’t have an imbalance in the amount of monies that they collect along with their colleagues. What is important is that they will be able to provide more work and to be able to do good work for the people, not only in their constituencies but in the country to help the ministers. We have a lot of work ahead of us and we believe that they are still, time is coming up on us and we need to be able to get the work done.”