Belize Forums

Belize Social Security Scandals

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:18:21 +0000

(Editor’s note: Mike Campbell is a declared independent candidate seeking to become the area representative for the Belize Rural South constituency. His views, opinions, et cetera are his own and not necessarily those of The Independent. We will from time to time be inviting submissions from persons who are candidates in the upcoming municipal and general elections, but we expect that Mr. Campbell’s column will become a regular feature in the newspaper’s op-ed section.)

We are continually subjected to Social Security scandals that are sickening to the heart. This money is collected from hardworking Belizeans and their employers. This money belongs to the workers whose labor created it and no one else. The Social Security Board has a scared responsibility to hold this money in trust for those that contributed it. They have an absolute moral and legal responsibility to manage this money responsibly.

The current uproar over the insider trading issues is the smoke not the fire. The fire is that each and every one of the Social Security
loans were based originally on insider trading. Few in the country even knew that such a program existed. The idea that it was for a select group (Social Security employees) is infuriating. To add insult to injury the government will now reward them all for their efforts by writing off the loans.

This pattern repeats itself over and over, from Fresh Catch/ Mena Group to the 3,000-acre land “deal” on North Ambergris Caye and many more. Each and every one of these loans was inappropriate and not in the best interest of the country and surely not in the best interest of the workers that contributed the money. The large loans to insider companies actually place the workers money at risk. Bankruptcy and depreciated assets or property values could spell almost total loss in some cases.

The quality of the home loans is based on the assumption that home prices will be stable which may or not be the case depending on many constantly changing factors and place the workers money at risk. Both types of “investments” put the Social Security Board in the strange position of competing with commercial banks. Our government should not be competing with private sector. Social Security money should be invested in secure financial instruments that bear low interest but are certainly safer than loaning money to a bankrupt company or betting on the stability of the real estate market. I have contributed substantial amounts to the Social Security
system in the name of my employees and never intended it to be used for anything except the welfare of those who contributed it.

Hard to believe that the man sweating it out in the hot sun has financed the house of someone who works under air conditioning with tons of benefits and at a beneficial rate of 8%. We have fallen to where we do not even recognize corruption when it slaps us in the face. We have become so accustomed to being abused that we just accept it as how things are in Belize.

A much more appropriate use for the fund would to be to create an unemployment insurance scheme. If we had had this in place the economic down turn would have been cushioned for many who have lost their homes. We could also consider enhancing benefits to our senior citizens. Most anything would be better than seeing them loan the money to themselves or their crony companies at 8% interest while some of the people that contributed that money are loosing their homes because they lost their jobs and had to pay commercial rates for their mortgages, often at double the “crony rate”.

I have been unable to pinpoint exactly when this program started, as it does not show on any database I can access. I would not be surprised to find that it was started around election time many years ago and has been used by both parties for years as a way to buy votes and loyalty. Lots of shame to go around on this one.

- Mike Campbell

Ten Acres On Western Highway For Sale or Joint Venture

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:53:32 +0000

We have a 10 acre property on the Western Highway 5 minutes from the City of Belmopan, Belize available for lease, outright purchase or for a joint venture.

The property has 600 feet highway frontage and includes a wooden structure suitable for a a bar and restaurant or for commercial use as an office or business place. City electricity and water on site.

The land has approximately 500 fruit trees planted in a well developed orchard, two water wells and Mount Pleasant Creek running right through the middle.

Possible uses include a restaurant and bar, nightclub, a tourism facility such as an art and handicraft outlet, development as a motel, resort or Bed and Breakfast, a water park, purified water business, or light industrial use such as a woodwork facility produce items from exotic wood for the tourism and export market.

Inquiries to: belizean@gmail.com

Belize Cops Target Tourists At Tourism Village

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 03:49:53 +0000

Tourists traveling to Belize, even if it is merely for a few hours off the cruise ships, need to be aware that local authorities frequently set up visitors on minor charges - and the experience can be a brutal one as reported by Channel 7:

There was quite an uproar at the Tourism Village this afternoon - when a female tourist was reportedly busted with a stick of marijuana. It's an increasingly common occurrence, but what made this one very different is that the female reportedly tried to swallow the stick and - right there on the street - in plain view of the very vocal vendors - the police reportedly tried to force her to cough it up.

That caused quite a commotion and a ruckus.

"Confirm reports state how they saw the black American lady buying the stick of weed from somebody, I don't know from whom, I didn't see all of that. Jules, by the time the lady got here - it's wrong Jules, for one little stick of weed. It's wrong for the policeman to beat up a woman and manhandle her like that."

Vendor: "They were asking the lady about some weed, because the lady swallowed the weed. The police grabbed her fling her down on the ground and they threw her into the blue wall over there. And when they fling her into the wall they choked her and when they choked her it was for her to bring up whatever they thought she had swallowed. And when they finished choking her the continued pulling her clothes pushing and burst her nose, because her nose was bleeding. It's not right because if I go to their country I don't want their police or their government to do me those things, and I am a tourist in their country." See story on TV 7 here.

Poyner was later taken to court to answer a slew of charges levied by the Belize Cops. The charges included Resisting Arrest, Obstruction of Justice and Harm against Police Constable Yadira Jones. Magistrate Roberto Ordonez convicted the 41 year old American businesswoman of Obstructing Justice and fined her $250. But Poyner was unable to pay the fine and go on her way as the court cashier had already left for the weekend. Poyner was sent to prison for a weekend, definitely not in paradise. Ms. Poyner is expected to fine another way home as her ship has already sailed.

IMF Calls For Tighter Belize Fiscal Policy

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 04:05:51 +0000

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has produced its latest report on Belize after consultations in August. It’s a mix of good and bad news. The good, according to a summary of the report, is essentially that the macroeconomic outlook for 2011 remains moderately positive. Output growth is projected at two point five percent, reflecting a strong performance in the first quarter—supported by an expansion in manufacturing and electricity sectors, and a modest recovery in overnight tourist arrivals. Foreign reserves are healthy but the high deficit is projected to remain at about three percent of GDP in the context of some improvement in the terms of trade. The public debt, accrued by the Government, went up slightly from eighty-two to eighty-three percent of GDP for 2010.

The bad is that there is a weak investment climate and concern for the rise in poverty which another recent report put at forty percent. Higher food and fuel prices are expected to push inflation slightly upward. The IMF team projects that there are challenges associated with the uncertain global environment, vulnerabilities in the banking system and rising gross financing needs of the public sector.

There are also concerns about non-performing loans in the banking system and that bank prudential indicators have remained weak. Against this backdrop, the IMF encouraged the authorities to strengthen the policy framework and advance the reform agenda and programs to reduce poverty. The business climate must also be strengthened to tackle Belize’s low productivity growth. It recommends a reduction in tax concessions, with improvement in overall tax collections and a containment of the wage bill as well as a streamlining of capital spending. The IMF also calls for timely compensation to former owners of nationalized entities, such as Telemedia and B.E.L., which are now entrenched in the constitution. As to stability in the financial sector, the IMF says that should be a high priority.

History Of Oil Exploration In Belize

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 15:11:09 +0000

The laws governing licenses for exploration of oil and gas in Belize are some of the most liberal in the world. Total footage of nearly 250,000 ft were, drilled and about 6,000 line miles of seismic surveys were conducted. Besides this, aeromagnetic, gravity, and geological mapping were done. Photogeomorphological interpretation, morphological studies from toposheets, and landsat imagery studies also were carried out. Shallow seismic surveys for the sea bottom were carried out in parts of southern Belize offshore. Forty exploratory wells and eight shallow stratigraphic holes were drilled. The depths of the exploratory wells ranged from 3,500 ft to 16,000 ft. A number of wells never reached the target depth (see Table 1), and in most of the wells production casing was not lowered and conventional testing not done. The depths of the shallow wells, which were for structural information, ranged from 1,990 ft to 2,843 ft in an area covering a few square miles. In the northern Belize, where 24 wells were drilled there are live oil shows in many of the wells. One of the wells in the DST gave a 60 ft oil column of 32 degrees API.

Shell was the first company to obtain an exploratory license as far back as 1938 and carried out geological surveys on the ground and photogeological studies with the help of aerial photographs obtained from a contract with Fairchild Aerial Surveys Inc. The outbreak of World War Il in 1939 saw the end of exploration by Shell Gulf was awarded a license obtained through one of its subsidiaries in 1949. The license covered the entire country and its territorial waters comprising 12,600 sq miles. Six years later in 1955 Gulf drilled the first wildcat at Yalbac on an "anticline" which is exposed and defined by photogeological studies.

In 1956 and 1957 Gulf, which entered into a partnership with Shell in 1957, drilled four more wells in northern Belize. In 1958 Gulf transferred its ownership to Bandini Petroleum Co., which in turn assigned its rights to Phillips. In the same year, Gulf drilled four more wells, and Phillips began its exploration activity in southern Belize by drilling two wells on land in 1959.

In 1961, Phillips drilled the deepest well in Belize, in the southern offshore, named 1 Palmetto Caye 1. The fourth well, also in the offshore, was drilled in the same year. In the next year, Phillips drilled three more wildcat wells, which turned out to be wells drilled for stratigraphic-structural information. Phillips drilled its eighth test well in southern Belize on land in 1963.

In 1967, Shell now called Belize Shell Development Co., in agreement with Phillips, drilled two wells in the offshore on two islands. Gulf, Phillips, and Shell carried out surface geological, photogeological, aeromagnetic, gravity, and seismic reflection work. other notable companies which contributed significantly are Anschutz, Exxon, Chevron, and Placid.

Anschutz drilled its first exploratory well in northern Belize in 1972. Six more wells were drilled in nothern Belize in 1972 and 1973 by Anschutz, whereas Chevron commenced drilling an offshore well in 1974. In 1977 Exxon drilled two wells in southern Belize, one offshore and another on land. Exxon drilled one more well on land in southern Belize, and Anschutz drilled two offshore wells. Placid drilled four wells on land in northern Belize during 1981-82. The present position is that most of the offshore area up to the territorial waters is helcl by Central American, Pan American, Anschutz, and Petromar.

There are two areas covering about 840 sq miles vacant in the offshore, the northern one formng part of the advertised areas of northern Belize. The advertisement appeared in Oil & Gas Journal in four of the issues of March and April 1982. All the advertised areas have been awarded to some oil companies. Very soon a few areas are likely to fall vacant, and these would be open for bidding.

Regional geology. Belize, which forms a part of the Yucatan platforrn, fits into the North American plate.

The Polochic fault which separates the Caribbean plate from the North American plate bisects the Gulf of Honduras near the southern boundary of Belize. Belize comprises broadly three geological provinces: the Maya uplift, the Belize basin in the south, and the Corozal basin in the north.

The Belize basin is the eastern extension of the Central Guatemalan basin referred to by different authors as the "South Plateau basin" and "Chapayal basin." The Belize basin extends further east into the Bartlett trough. The Corozal basin is the eastern continuation of the North Peten basin. The Corozal basin also is believed to be the western continuation of the Yucatan basin in the Caribbean. According to one view, the May Uplift and the Cayman Ridge are structurally related. The reflection seismic work suggests the presence of a northnortheast trending arch, apparently the continuation of the Maya uplift which appears to separate the Belize basin from the Corozal basin.

Stratigraphy. Southern Belize : The stratigraphy of the Belize basin indicates that Jurassic clastics overlie the "basement" comprising the Paleozoic rocks. The Cretaceous is predominantly a carbonate section with dolomites and limestones and very little evaporites. Clastics are also present in the Cretaceous. The Tertiary includes a lower clastic section and an upper carbonate section.

Northern Belize: The Corozal basin comprises a carbonate section with anhydrites in its lower part. The lower carbonate section is essentially a dolomite, whereas the upper secton consists of dolomite and limestone. There is a thin clastic section overlying the "basement." Both paleontology and palynology indicates a Maastrichtian age for rocks a thousand feet from the surface. There appears to be very little Tertiary and Quaternary. Structure. The Maya Mountains are described by earlier workers as a "horst."

The total sedimentary section is more in the Belize basin, and the Teritary is quite thick compared to the Corozal basin. There are clastics in both Mesozoic and Tertiary. There are practically no evaporites, but thin salt is present. Basic lava flows of probable Late Cretaceous age are present in the section. There appears to be a deep trough filled with sediments bordering the coast in the offshore. Seismic sections show structures to be gentle, but drilling of wells showed a surprisingly different picture. There is undoubtedly repetition of the section in some wells and an enormous thickening of the section over a short distance indicating the presence of faults with large throw. According to one view the laramide folded belt of Guatemala extends into southern Belize. So far, however, no folding and thrusting is reported from the outcrops in the southern flanks of the Maya Mountains.

Compared with the Belize basin the structure of Corozal basin is simple. There seems to be a high separating the basin into two - the western and the eastern parts. The western part of the basin dips gently northwards and northwestwards into the Peten basin. The eastern part dips very gently eastwards. The entire basin is sliced by easterly heading north-northeast to south-southwest trending faults, which according to the photogeomorphological and landsat imagery interpretation, have left lateral strike slip movements.

One view is that the strike slip movements are post-Laramide. Folds in this basin are either associated with the strike slip faults or are drag effects of the normal faults. This basin appears to have experienced only epei rogenic movements after the element of granites which were Late Palaeozoic and Early Mesozoic. The structures are thus likely to be Late Tertiary in age and naturally are younger than those of the Belize basin.

Petroleum geology. The oil shows in the Belize basin are in the dolomite section below the Tertiary clastics.

This dolomite is believed to be the equivalent of the Coban formation. The fact that this basin is the eastern continuation of the Southern Peten ' basin of Guatemala where commercial oil is found, the oil shows on the surface and subsurface, and the presence of favorable reservoir facies and cap rock and anticlinal structures strongly suggest that once exploration activity picks up discovery of oil would not be a far cry away.

Most of the wells drilled in the Corozal basin have live oil shows in the anhydite-dolomite section. Very few dead oil stains are found in wells above this section, suggesting that there is no escape of oil and that anhydrite has been an effective cap rock. Wells drilled in this basin are largely based on either gravity anomalies or geomorphological features, or at best on the poor seismic data. So it is possible that wells were not located on the highest part of the structures.

In one case, at least, it was agreed that the well was drilled just at the oilwater contact. In another well there were oil shows for about 1,100 ft below the first anhydrite, which appears to be a regional cap rock. Another well drilled east of this across a fault had about 600 ft of live oil shows but in a lower stratigraphic horizon.

The main problem in Corozal basin is that seismic data are very poor. Any serious exploration in this basin cannot be undertaken without first getting good seismic data. The poor quality of seismic data is due to the near surface conditions like the Karst, presence of marshes, jungles, numerous streams and creeks, and to some extent subsuface conditions. The sonic velocities show good contrasts, and, so once suitable parameters are chosen, it should not be difficult to obtain good records. The stratigraphy shows a quite good number of breaks-basement-basal clastics, alternations of anhydrite and dolomites and dolomitelimestone. These interfaces should be good reflectors.

Once structures are delineated by good seismic there is no doubt that oil would be discovered in commercial quantities in this basin. Incidentally, this basin is the Eastern continuation of the North Peten basin of Guatema where oil is reportedly found.
Conclusion. Belize has one of the most liberal petroleum laws. It has a stable and democratic government, and the people are law abiding citizens. External threats do not exist any more. Belize thus has one of the most congenial investment climates. All geological conditions required for accumulation of oil are present. The country is very near the United States, which happens to be (1) the biggest consumer of oil in the world, (2) the largest importer of oil from the Middle East which is so far away, and (3) technologically the most highly advanced nation in the world of petroleum. It is in the interests of both the United States and Belize that U.S. companies should find oil in this country where already a large investment by U.S. citizens.

Oil pumpjacks are a common site in Western Belize, especially in the Spanish Lookout and City of Belmopan areas. The Youtube Video below shows a pump at work in the Mennonite community at Spanish Lookout Belize.

Why Is There Only One Beer Company In Belize

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 16:04:38 +0000

A frequent question in our private mailing list runs along the lines of why is Belikin the only beer made in Belize. In a nutshell, there is only one beer company in the country. There used to be two and many Belizeans remember the days when there was a choice between Belikin and Charger Beer. The history can best be told by Evan X Hyde, publisher of the Amandala newspaper who wrote this piece some years ago:

There are important and interesting stories in Belize which just fade into unwritten history over the years, and no one ever speaks in print about these stories. One such story is the beer war of the 1970's between Belikin and Charger.

Belikin came on the scene in the late 1960's when so-called "import substitution" was all the rage in Caribbean economic circles. Before Belikin, we drank imported Heineken and Amstel beer, and Guinness stout, all for 50 cents a pint. When Belikin came on the scene the PUP government raised taxes on foreign beers, so most of us had to start drinking Belikin.

Belikin was not an especially tasty product in those days, and there was a dispute between UBAD and the Belikin people which caused us to boycott Bowen products for a few months in 1970. UBAD survived for a while by holding dances; we also ran a club down at the corner of Racecourse Street and George Street. So we were in the business of selling beer. We had a disagreement with the Bowen people over the bottles, but I don't remember the details.

The Bowen family, which held the lucrative Coca-Cola soft drink franchise before they went into beer, is a high ranking "Bayman" family in Belize. They are like royalty here, and trace their ancestry to the Battle of St. George's Caye and before that.

In the early 1970's a challenge to Belikin was raised by two brothers - Arturo and Orlando Matus, whose ancestors came here as ladino refugees from the Caste War in the Yucatan, a war which began in 1847 and lasted most of the second half of the nineteenth century.

The partnership between the two Matus brothers was a complementary one. Arturo, the older, was "street", and practical. He had opened his own business on Albert Street at the age of 21 in 1958, and had learned the hard way, through experience. Orlando was science, technology and business administration. A brilliant student at St. John's College, he had gone on to university in New Orleans, married an American wife, and returned to Belize very well qualified. Orlando and his wife would be in charge of making the beer: Arturo would handle marketing and public relations.

The one thing Charger had over Belikin was taste. In fact, the taste of the new Bowen Lighthouse beer is quite similar to the old Charger taste.

One thing Belikin had over Charger was the stout. When Charger was dominating the domestic beer market in the middle 1970's, Belikin Stout ruled that market. Tiger Stout, the Charger product, never really challenged Belikin Stout.

After UBAD folded in late 1974, I had satisfied my need for competition by going into dominoes, and our team, Tough Guys, became champions in 1975.

I really don't know where or when I met Arturo Matus, a man I call "Licenciado", but what I do remember is that he was one of only two people who contributed to my 1974 Collet division campaign - the other was Leroy Taegar.

Licenciado had asked me, in his quiet way, to take over the Charger football team, which was being managed by the late Oliver "Racku" Craig, Bullet's father. Following the Tough Guys' blackstick championship, I was "pumped up", so, along with the late Ashton "Ifa" Molino, the Tough Guys' captain, I went to Licenciado and told him I would take over the Charger football team.

This was three weeks before the football season was scheduled to begin. In othe words, I had to build a team in three weeks. I was young. No problem. I didn't know a damned thing about business matters in Belize, wasn't interested. Had I known then what I know now, however, I would have thought twice, probably thrice, about getting mixed up in the beer war. thought I was getting back into football, was too inexperienced to realize that football was a big part of the beer war, or would become so, even though Belikin had no football team as such.

I built a young team with great velocity which achieved much popularity. Dusty Panton and Sammy Gentle on the wings; Harry Cadle and Stud Hendricks (father of Christopher and Oliver) over the ball; Sandy Hinks, Albert Arnold, Guillermo Cutkelvin, the veteran "Aqui Esta" Frazer in the middle; the veteran Wallace "Rungu" Glenn as center defender and captain; Russell Vellos (yes, the Amandala editor) and Rudolph "Toad" Bowen flanking him; Noel "The Flying Fargo" Ferguson in goal. The youth who became a superstar on that team was supposed to play left wing but ended up as a national selection defender - Michael "Suffudge" Rushford. (Had met him at Wesley College in 71/72.) Have to mention my backup goalie - Norman "Mani Pratt" Humes. 'Nuff love. Also Donald "Dover" Lightburn. And my loyal sidekick, Edison "Mike" Michael.

The Charger football team was exciting and no doubt helped to sell beer. Charger beer became a red hot product in the City.

Looking back, I believe our beer competitor used their considerable influence to create problems for our team. But that's legal. By early 1977, with Charger leading the league in its second season, I gave up management of the team. Official football circles were victimizing the team.

The owners of the Charger team, the Matus brothers, should have dealt with that situation, but Evan X Hyde was only a couple years removed from the UBAD presidency, so I was still carrying that "racist" stigma. Orlando Matus was always uncomfortable with me. He had Hispanic business friends close to him who were telling him that I was a liability in his business. Licenciado, on the other hand, was always with me 100 percent.

Every Christmas Eve for the last 20, 25 years, Licenciado comes to my house. He brings a bottle of whiskey, and we sit and talk for hours. He tells me that there was a time, between 1976 and 1977, when Charger was offered the opportunity, by Bowen's bankers, to buy out Belikin. Orlando Matus declined the offer, on the grounds that he didn't want to create a monopoly, or something like that. In effect, he overruled Licenciado.

Today, Charger is just a faint, faint memory. Orlando Matus is in Louisiana, a defeated man. Belikin rules in Belize.

But there was a time when the Charger football team ran out onto the MCC Grounds Sunday afternoons in their green and white jerseys, and it was all excitement for the next 90 minutes. The Garden was crowded and rocking every Sunday those days. Berger 404, the champions, with Bailar; White Label with Sir Andie; J & E with Hubert Bradley; Landivar with the senior Albert Hoy. Ah, beloved, those were good days, real good days.

Editor's Note: You May Want To See Related Article Beers of Belize