Election activist Jerry Enriquez is still on the quest to force a redistricting exercise, as he describes it, there have been hurdles along the way.
But there's also been vindication.
Enriquez and his attorney has taken three cases to the CCJ and seen major wins.
He gave us an update via Zoom today.
Jerry Enriquez, Activist
"One for the wasted cost that he was imposing on my attorney that means the attorney must pay half the cost of the state for the case that we brought up. Secondly was the procedure for appealing our case. That judge, there was also another technicality in which the opposing party was arguing that we did not properly file for the appeal. That was based on the rule that the order for appeal must be signed, sealed or otherwise perfected and so that was another hurdle for us to cross. The CCJ ruled that the ruling in that appeal was not appropriate and therefore it was thrown out. Thirdly was the, so we won on those two cases, we won the CCJ throughout the wasted cost, the shameless cost that was being imposed by the judge in order to prevent us from moving further and in a way to teach my attorney a lesson as he mentioned even before the case was judged. Then the other one we won of course was the perfected order which means that we could have appeal because the order was already signed and sealed by the judge. So that was the second one. The third one, our appeal was the biased application, that wanted the judge recused from the our case. The CCJ ruled that we must remit that appeal to the high court, our appeal for recusal of the judge. So those are the three cases."
"We have to get back now to appealing our case and to get that through the process. We have crossed those hurdles and therefore we intend to challenge the ruling of Justice Hondora in our case regarding redistricting."
Shrouded in Secrecy: Elections Commission Denies Enriquez's FOIA Request
The last time we spoke to Enriquez, he explained that he had sent a Freedom of Information Request to the Elections and Boundaries Commission. He explained that while the government insists that the redistricting process is happening, it remains shrouded in secrecy. However, he got a response three weeks ago, and his request had been denied. He spoke to us more about that as well.
Jerry Enriquez, Activist
"The FOIA was basically seeking information as to the process for redistricting. Right now, everything seems to be done in secrecy and so the public has a right to know how that process is going on, what are the proposals for redistricting or balancing the electoral divisions, the public has a right to know if they are on target to complete this by the end of 2026 like the prime minister promised. The point is that we've been burnt before when between 2020 and 2025, after the prime minister repeatedly promised that redistricting will be done, all of a sudden it was not done, the proposal submitted by the elections and boundaries commission was not accepted, it was carelessly done in my view because it did not meet the target for international standards and over two decades there have not been redistricting as it ought to have been done so we need to know, the public needs to know what is going on. I find that the response by the elections and boundaries commission to be arrogant and they're still maintaining secrecy. They ought to still provide some information if not all to inform the citizens of Belize where we're at and just to keep us informed, this culture of secrecy and arrogance. It's unacceptable for any democracy." "I could tell you that it could be a very tiring sometimes frustrating thing but we have to keep our eye on the goal and that goal is for Belizeans to be fairly represented in the National Assembly as is mandated by the constitution, so that is the goal."
Accountability Crisis: Enriquez Sues Government Over Vacant Ombudsman Seat
And since there is no ombudsman, Enriquez cannot challenge the denial of his FOIA. So he is now suing the government for not appointing a new ombudsman. Here's what he said about that.
Jerry Enriquez, Activist
"Yes we have a case on July 21st against the attorney general for the failure of the government to fill that important post of the ombudsman. There is no way in the constitution that a government can decide in and of their own selves that we can delay and not have an ombudsman that is not right therefore we want the court to set that right so that it does not happen again."
"There is no reason to have no ombudsman in place even though there is move to turn it into a human rights office, that should not prevent the people during that process to have access to an ombudsman. In fact, the big flaw was that they terminated the former ombudsman without even having someone in place, that should not have happened. It is like saying well we will not have a governor general, let us wait because we're going to try to figure out what the role will be or we will not have a minister in his office or we will not have anybody, we will not have an auditor general, we will not have these key positions until we decide when we're ready. That cannot happen and that is unconstitutional and therefore they cannot come up with those kinds of excuses."
SIRDI Gets 5 Hiluxes
Today GOB handed over 4 new Toyota Hilux pickup trucks to the Sugar Industry Research and Development Institute known as SIRDI. An additional truck was also donated to the Climate Resilient and Sustainable Agriculture Project.
The CEO of the Ministry of Economic Transformation explained more.
Carlos Pol, CEO, Ministry of Economic Transformation
"We have a project that is here to assist especially the Northern districts with the cane. Government approached the World Bank in 2022 and requested a loan to help our farmers because they were in a very difficult situation back then. So the World Bank stepped up and decided to help us with this climate resilient which will look at integrated smart agriculture practices, building capacity for institutions and the handing over of this vehicle is part of this building capacity to SIRDI which is the research department that will help us in collecting more data and ensuring that we achieve the objectives that was being laid out in this five year program."
Marcos Osorio, Executive Director, SIRDI
"The set of 5 vehicles that SIRDI is receiving along with sugar cane production committee will at this time weather conditions that are challenging for the agricultural sector and in this case the sugar cane industry of northern Belize, it is very challenging when it comes to pests and diseases and it requires more mobilization of our technical team in the fields to provide support to farmers to do monitoring, to do pest control and management. This set of vehicles will certainly make our services to farmers and the industry at large more efficient and will bring about the necessary support to all cane farmers in ensuring that we can bring back the industry to what it was some years ago."
Influencial Music Producer Dies At 42 From Cancer
And finally tonight, Belize's music industry is mourning the loss of acclaimed producer and musician Kendoyll "KSBEATS" Simpson, who passed away yesterday after a two-year battle with cancer.
The 42-year-old Simpson was widely regarded as one of Belize's most influential music producers, earning respect for shaping the sound of numerous local artists through his work at Simpson Productions and his distinctive production style. Tributes have poured in from musicians, entertainers, and fans across the country, remembering him not only for his musical talent but also for his mentorship and lasting contributions to Belize's entertainment industry.
