DR1 Daily News - Tuesday, 6 December 2016

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RD$16 billion for low-cost housing
Christmas wages to be paid
Tax Agency reports 14% rise in tax collections
Government can cope with debt
Imbert Bridge fully open
Money available to help flood victims
Deaths rise due to floods
Proposal to tax carbonated drinks
Over 4,000 still have not submitted asset declaration
Proconsumidor rejects new turbo collection call resolution
Duplication and ineffectiveness prevail in government
RD$3 million payment for tornado damage questioned
Caama?o family files lawsuit
Franco Badia passes
Drug haul off Barahona province
Doll House price list
Big Papi benefit raises US$700,000
Christmas Bazaar in Sosua Park
Cabarete Fashion Show



RD$16 billion for low-cost housing
Central Bank governor H?ctor Valdez Albizu announced on Monday, 5 December 2016 that RD$12 billion is being made available from the legal reserves of several banks and savings and loan associations for the construction of low-cost housing, especially in the Ciudad Juan Bosch government housing project.

In a meeting with members of the Association of Commercial Banks (ABA) on Monday, 5 December 2016, Valdez Albizu said that the funds would be used for making 20-year loans to the general public at 9% interest rate, reviewable every four years, but with a cap of 1% a year and a maximum of 12% over the 20-year period.

He says this is in addition to RD$4.4 billion pending for the disbursement of loans made available in March 2015. He said overall, banks and savings and loans associations now have RD$16 billion available for low-cost housing loans, for dwellings valued up to RD$2.4 million.

Minister of Hacienda Donald Guerrero said that the government would issue bonds for US$100 million at a 10-year term and 6% interest in mid-December, as part of the US$600 million allocated in the National Budget.

He called on the banking sector to contribute to the government’s initiatives to restore roads damaged by the flooding of recent weeks. He said the government would be making a bond placement to benefit the Red Vial trust.

The bankers who took part in the ABA meeting were Luis Molina Ach?car, Ignacio Guerra, Sim?n Lizardo, Mark Silverman, Robert A. Williams, Maximo Vidal, Fausto Pimentel, Jos? Antonio Rodr?guez Copello and Luis Rojas.

The Central Bank was also represented by deputy governor Clarissa de la Rocha de Torres, Central Bank manager Ervin Novas, deputy manager for monetary, exchange and financial policies Joel Tejeda, and the director of regulation and financial stability, Ram?n Rosario.

http://www.bancentral.gov.do/notas_...2-mil-millones-de-encaje-legal-para-viviendas


Christmas wages to be paid
The Dominican economy is set to get a boost as more than RD$12.4 billion in Christmas wages is paid to government workers starting Monday, 5 December 2016. This total does not include the Christmas wages paid by autonomous state institutions and local governments across the country.

National Treasurer Alberto Perdomo Pina said the payments, which are coordinated with the BanReservas governmental bank will be made gradually. The Labor Code says that Christmas wages need to be paid by 20 December at the latest.

Antonio Ramos, president of the National Organization of Commercial Businesses (ONEC) that represents malls and large department stores said they were expecting high sales this holiday season.

The authorities have also decided to step up security patrols on city streets and have posted an additional 15,000 police officers as part of an operation called “Peace at Christmas.” This includes 3,000 agents from the Metropolitan Transport Authority (AMET) and 1,200 military personnel. The operation will last until 10 January 2017.

A report in El D?a estimates that the Christmas wages mean that RD$99.6 billion will be circulating in December when the normal December wages are added to the Christmas wage.

http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias...ago-de-regalia-pascual-en-el-estado-AI5648211
http://eldia.com.do/este-mes-circularan-mas-rd99610-8-millones/


Tax Agency reports 14% rise in tax collections
The Tax Agency (DGII) has reported a 14% increase in tax collections for September, October and November 2016. DGII director Mag?n D?az says he expects a two-digit increase for collections in December. D?az, who took the helm of the DGII in August 2016, was speaking to Unibe students on the tax administration and tax collection prospects on Monday, 5 December 2016. The event was also attended by Customs Agency (DGA) director Enrique Ram?rez Paniagua.

D?az said that the DGII was working together with the DGA to increase the tax burden from 13.1% to 13.2%.

They expect an increase to 13.8% by the end of 2017. He said IMF studies show the DR has the potential to collect an additional 2.3% to 4% in taxes.


Government can cope with debt
Administrative Minister of the Presidency Jose Ramon Peralta has confirmed that the government has managed the public debt and budgetary deficit responsibly. He was responding to criticism from opposition PRM leader Luis Abinader who said that the Medina government’s constant new borrowing could plunge the country into problems with a high social cost. Abinader called on the government to reduce spending.

Peralta said that the government had opted for the best way of managing both the debt and the budget. He pointed out that one of the options, used in Spain and Greece, was to close everything and concentrate on paying the debt even though the economy would crash. The other option was to manage the debt responsibly and keep within the established deficit that should decrease and allow the economy to grow.

He said that they had chosen the second option that they believe has given results as the country is hailed as an economic model for all of Latin America, according to a range of institutions including the World Bank. He added that the Dominican Republic was the only country that is taking people out of poverty and that it has become the main foreign investment destination in Central America. Panama held the position in 2015.

http://www.diariolibre.com/opinion/...pcion-para-manejar-el-endeudamiento-KF5645590


Imbert Bridge fully open
According to the Ministry of Public Works (MOPC), light and heavy vehicles can now use two lanes of the Imbert Bridge over the river Bajabonico, on the Navarrete-Puerto Plata road.

One of the approaches to the bridge has been rebuilt after suffering damage during the recent torrential rains in the northern region, which caused the river to flood.

MOPC cabinet chief Ram?n Antonio Pep?n said that the rising river waters meant that only one lane of two of the bridge was operational and an alternative route has been established from the entrance to Guananico-El Mamey, passing through Villa Isabela-El Ranchero, then El Estrecho, and finally Vuelta Larga until Imbert.

The works included channeling the riverbed for a length of 300 meters by 50 meters wide and 1.5 meters deep to construct a walkway to divert the river.

http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias...ert-para-transitar-en-doble-sentido-LA5651184


Money available to help flood victims
In an interview at the Presidential Palace on Monday, 5 December 2016, Hacienda Minister Donald Guerrero and Public Works Minister Gonzalo Castillo said that the government has the funds to pay for repairing flood-related damage in 15 provinces. A state of emergency has been declared in the 15 worst affected provinces.

Guerrero said that the recently approved National Budget contains a US$100 million loan to cover this type of disaster as well as a further US$6.5 billion that corresponds to 1% of the same budget.

Gonzalo Castillo said that they are going to assess the damage, estimated at around RD$20 billion, and that they have already reopened some of the access routes to Puerto Plata.

Last week the Senate approved a proposal, authorized by President Danilo Medina, to declare the State of Emergency for the 15 worst affected provinces, which are: Puerto Plata, La Vega, Espaillat (Moca), Maria Trinidad S?nchez (Nagua), Santiago, Duarte (San Francisco de Macor?s), Saman?, S?nchez Ramirez (Cotu?), Montecristi, La Altagracia (Higuey), Hermanas Mirabal (Salcedo), Hato Mayor, Valverde (Mao), El Seibo and Monse?or Nouel (Bonao).

http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias...ncias-en-emergencia-por-las-lluvias-AB5650651


Deaths rise due to floods
The Ministry of Public Health has announced a total of 6,410 cases of dengue fever and 32 deaths from the disease in the first 10 months of 2016.

According to bulletin 46 from the Ministry’s Epidemiology Department (Digepi) there have been 5,225 cases of zika. A total of 285 people of different ages and both sexes have gone on to develop Guillain-Barre Syndrome and 22 babies have been born with microcephaly as of 29 November 2016.

There have been 1,105 suspected cases of cholera with 23 deaths and 503 suspected cases of leptospirosis, which always increases in rainy periods, and 42 deaths.

http://digepisalud.gob.do
http://almomento.net/reportan-32-muertos-por-dengue-este-ano-en-republica-dominicana/268338


Proposal to tax carbonated drinks
The Chamber of Deputies is considering a proposal aimed at adding a 20% tax on soft and energy drinks. The tax would affect carbonated and sweetened beverages and energy drinks and would limit bottle sizes to 20 ounces. The author of the proposal is the PLD Deputy for Puerto Plata, Juan Carlos Qui?ones.

He said that the measure was aimed at discouraging consumption of these drinks as according to the World Health Organization (WHO) they have no health benefits and are a leading factor in the increase in conditions like diabetes, obesity and hypertension.

Qui?ones said that people who drink one or more soda a day, even diet sodas, have a 50% increased risk of developing a metabolic disorder that can lead to heart problems or a heart attack.

According to the proposal, 15% of the tax collected will go to the Ministry of Public Health to create health programs aimed at changing the population’s dietary habits and the remaining 5% will go to the Ministry of the Environment to develop policies for encouraging the population to use plastic and glass waste appropriately.

The bill also proposes a ban on television adverts promoting this type of drink before 9pm. In addition, the sale of carbonated drinks would not be permitted in schools or educational institutions to children under the age of 12 without their parents’ express consent.

http://hoy.com.do/somete-proyecto-establece-impuesto-de-20-a-bebidas/


Over 4,000 still have not submitted asset declaration
Chamber of Accounts president Licelot Marte de Barrios has revealed that 4,388 public officials have still not completed their legal declaration of assets, despite the expiry of the deadline, which was extended 30 November 2016. The law orders the government to dismiss officials who do not submit their asset declarations.

According to Marte de Barrios, 17 of the officials who have still not submitted their statements were appointed by President Danilo Medina by decree and the rest are deputies, mayors and city councilors.

As reported in Diario Libre, Administrative Minister of the Presidency Jose Ram?n Peralta said that the government would be retaining the December and Christmas wages of officials who have not presented the required wealth statement.

http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias/todavia-4-388-funcionarios-no-han-declarado-sus-bienes-NA5651384
http://diarionoticiasdigital.do/v2/funcionarios-que-no-declararon-bienes-no-cobraran-este-mes/


Proconsumidor rejects new turbo collection call resolution
Under its new director Jos? del Castillo, the Dominican Telecommunications Institute recently authorized debt collection calls to be made to work places and extended the calling hours and days. The government consumer defense agency Proconsumidor has now presented a legal recourse where it states that the Indotel board of directors Resolution 010-16 is in violation of several articles of the Constitution and Consumer Rights Law 358-05.


Duplication and ineffectiveness prevail in government
A report in El D?a on Tuesday, 6 December 2016 focuses on dozens of government agencies whose main purpose is to provide “jobs” for people with political influence. The report says there is widespread duplication of roles in government and lack of efficiency in public spending. It mentions organizations like the State Sugar Council (CEA), which should have been closed when the state sugar mills were privatized but still has a budget of RD$126.2 million, the Price Stabilization Institute (Inespre) that has no role in a free market economy but still costs taxpayers RD$1 billion every year.

The report also mentions the Dominican Sugar Institute with RD$39.5 million in budget and practically no role whatsoever and the large Office of Supervisory Engineers of Public Works with its budget of RD$9 trillion a year, and a role that duplicates that of the Ministry of Public Works. The Presidency has around 30 entities that duplicate other roles of the government cabinet. In the transport sector, there are around 15 entities with duplication of roles.

http://eldia.com.do/duplicidad-e-inoperancia-debilitan-la-distribucion-del-presupuesto/


RD$3 million payment for tornado damage questioned
A report in Acento says that the Ministry of Agriculture has compensated a farmer in Constanza for losses caused by a tornado that apparently never happened.

The report says that the beneficiary, Ram?n Antonio Hern?ndez Grull?n is also a Ministry of Agriculture advisor, which reveals a lack of ethics at the Ministry of Agriculture. Hern?ndez received a RD$3 million check for the reconstruction of a farm produce nursery that was supposedly destroyed by a tornado in October 2015 that never happened, reports Acento. Hern?ndez is a member of the Uni?n Nacional de Productores Agr?colas (Unaproda). In a statement posted on its Whatsapp account, Agroconstanza demands an explanation about the situation. The check was dated 28 September 2016.

http://acento.com.do/2016/economia/...stanza-perdio-invernadero-tornado-nunca-paso/


Caama?o family files lawsuit
Relatives of the late Claudio Caama?o Grull?n have filed a RD$100 million lawsuit against four medical centers that they claim denied timely medical treatment to the national hero on 20 March 2016.

The victim’s son, Claudio Caama?o Velez, said that the clinics are Center for Diagnostics and Advanced Medicine (Cedimat), Aguas Vivas, Cl?nica Abreu and the Central University of the East (UCE) Medical Center, which denied Caama?o Grull?n treatment after he was injured in a traffic accident in Peravia (Ban?) province and was taken to hospitals for treatment.

He said that staff negligence in the aforementioned clinics led to his father’s rapid deterioration and subsequent death.

The family stressed that what happened to their relative could happen to any Dominican and that it happens every day. Caama?o Grull?n fought to defend the Dominican people’s sovereignty in the 1965 war.

At the hearing in the National District on Monday, 5 December 2016, Judge Candy Marcial Pascual set the date of the next hearing for 10 February 2017 to give both sides time to exchange documents and read the files.

http://www.elcaribe.com.do/2016/12/05/familia-caamano-demanda-cedimat-uce-por-100-millones-pesos


Franco Badia passes
Former National District mayor and deputy Pedro Antonio Franco Badia died at the age of 81 on Sunday, 4 December 2016. He had been hospitalized at Cedimat for 11 days with respiratory problems.

A member of the PRD for more than 40 years, Franco Badia was born in Nona, San Francisco de Macoris on 25 May 1935. A doctor in law from the UASD state university, he served as a judge in San Francisco de Macor?s, and was legal advisor to the Minister of Foreign Relations, and ambassador in Argentina. He also served as Minister of Labor and Interior and Police as well as Administrative Minister of the Presidency.

http://hoy.com.do/fallecio-el-dirigente-del-prd-pedro-franco-badia/


Drug haul off Barahona province
Agents from the National Drug Control Agency (DNCD) and the Navy have arrested three people and confiscated 20 packages of what is presumed to be cocaine or heroin and 77 packs of what they believe to be marijuana inside a speedboat that was heading for the coast in the province of Barahona.

In a press release the DNCD said that the boat was intercepted near La Loma de Curro in Barahona province but did not state the nationality of those arrested or the origin of the drugs.

The drugs have been sent to the National Forensic Science Institute (INACIF) to ascertain the weight and exact type of drug.

http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias...on-20-paquetes-y-77-pacas-de-drogas-IA5651813


Doll House price list*
The Tuesday, 6 December 2016 edition of Diario Libre publishes details from the case filed against the owners and managers of the Doll House nightclub on Santo Domingo’s Malec?n. As reported, women from Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, United States, Spain, Brazil, Ukraine, and Belarus were available for sex services.

The establishment charged RD$500 for admission, RD$800 to watch a woman perform an erotic dance with no touching, RD$800 per song, RD$7,000 for the dance and more, RD$15,000 for an hour in a bedroom with a woman.

In the case, owner Rafael Alc?ntara Casado in association with Laura Bautista Rojas and Santos Rodr?guez Santos are accused of belonging to a criminal ring for people trafficking and money laundering. The nightclub was closed by the authorities on Friday, 2 December 2016.

http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias...aba-personalmente-a-las-extranjeras-EX5653341


Big Papi benefit raises US$700,000
This year’s David Ortiz Celebrity Golf Classic, now in its ninth year, has raised US$700,000 for the David Ort?z Children’s Fund. The fund pays for children in the Dominican Republic and New England to have life-saving surgery in partnership with World Pediatric Project and MassGeneral Hospital for Children. The event was held from 1-3 December 2016 at the Punta Espada Golf Course in Cap Cana, Punta Cana.

Ort?z played host to Boston Red Sox players Hanley Ramirez and Robby Scott, 2016 World Series champion Cubs Dexter Fowler and Aroldis Chapman, Mariners star Robinson Cano, Orioles outfielder Adam Jones, Blue Jays Josh Donaldson, Edwin Encarnaci?n, and Jos? Bautista, Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia, as well as former Celtics guard Ray Allen, Bruins legend Bobby Orr, former Sox knuckleballer Tim Wakefield, actor Kevin Chapman, comedian Lenny Clarke, and JAM’N 94.5’s DJ Pup Dawg, among many others.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifesty...olf-tourney/ipo096TTPxEL8QnyzJmF1J/story.html


Christmas Bazaar in Sosua Park
UMPC that gathers the municipalities of Puerto Plata has announced a Christmas bazaar with arts and crafts for this Saturday, 10 December 2016 at the Parque Las Flores in El Batey, Sos?a. From 10am to 7pm. This is a good time to pick up arts and crafts for Christmas gifts.
*

Cabarete Fashion Show
Millennium Resort & Spa is inviting the public to a fashion benefit this Saturday, 10 December 2016 as of 6pm. See and purchase designs by Sori & Co., Maribel Ram?rez, Carolina Tejada, Alvaro Montilla, Laura Polanco, Manuel Febrillet, Providencia Pe?a, Regina Rose, Solange Jim?nez, Ariel Encarnaci?n, Raymon Design and Giannina Azar. Tickets are RD$600 general admission and RD$1,000 VIP. This is a benefit for Dream Project and DR2020.

For information on upcoming events:
http://www.dr1.com/calendar


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