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Daily News - 8 January 2001
President Mejía to travel to Canada in April
The Presidency confirmed that President Hipolito Mejia will travel to Canada to participate in the Summit of the Americas, scheduled for 20-22 April in Quebec City, Canada. The third of its kind, the spring 2001 conference will discuss advances towards the Free Trade Area of the Americas, among other common hemispheric issues. Luis Gonzalez Fabra, press spokesman for the Mejia administration, said the President will meet then President George W. Bush at the event. A meeting is also scheduled with then President of Haiti, Jean Bertrand Aristide.
For more information on the summit, see http://www.americascanada.org/eventsummit/menu-e.asp
American to buy TWA?
The announcement of negotiations for American Airlines to purchase TWA is not good news for the DR. AA dominates fares to the DR and the reduction of players will mean AA will consolidate its dominant position in the DR that suffers from some of the highest fares in the region due to lack of competition. TWA had offered some great fares to the DR this winter season.
The Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29892-2001Jan7.html) reported on Sunday that TWA plans to file for bankruptcy, leaving the way for AA to buy the company. As per the Washington Post, the purchase of TWA would make American comparable in size to the combined United and US Airways after the planned merger. The newspaper highlights that the acquisition of TWA's St. Louis operations would give American a much-needed third mid-continent hub, along with the airports in Chicago and Dallas-Fort Worth. According to the Washington Post sources, the plan is to discontinue the TWA name.
NYT: Differences between Punta Cana and Cancún
The New York Times published an extensive article and photographs on Punta Cana in its 7 January 2001 Sunday Travel section. Entitled, "From the Scrub Comes a Behemoth," the article by Scott Norvell reflects the boom in US travel to the eastern coast of the DR. The author couldn't resist drawing parallels to Punta Cana being the next Cancún while pointing out there are more differences than similarities between both areas. "It's the next Cancún. The label has stuck on Punta Cana. In the travel trade press. On the tongues of agents" he starts his article to quickly admit, people couldn't be more wrong. "It's too bad, because Punta Cana and Cancún, in Mexico, couldn't be more different." He then goes to point out the many differences, such as high rise versus low rise resorts, low density of resorts versus cramming of hotels, crowds and urban mayhem in Cancun versus abundance of semi-deserted beaches in Punta Cana. But, he admits, "things are changing quickly" with golf courses, time shares and beachfront vendor villages everywhere. He also points out that the Europeans have claimed Punta Cana first, and their influence shows in the bathing wear and in the food served.
Row over Mirador Park area continues
Father Manuel Antonio Ruiz continues to battle against the government concession to Tokio Motors, an importer of used motorcycles and refrigerators from Japan, of 30,000 meters adjacent to the vocational school the church is building in the area. Supposedly, the entire area is a protected area where constructions should not have been permitted at all.
Father Ruiz's parish benefited from the approval by the past administration of an extension of 10,000 square meters to build a vocational school. News reports say the donation was agreed upon supposedly between the Archdiocese of Santo Domingo and the Department of Parks during the Leonel Fernández Administration, but apparently there is nothing legal about this either. El Siglo newspaper said that President Mejia has ordered the legal consultant of the Executive Branch to prepare the documentation to make formal the donation of the area to the Catholic priest for the Movearte school. This would regularize the situation of the school. Defending his stand, Father Ruiz has presented a legal suit for fraud against the state versus the administrative secretary of the Presidency and the administrator of Bienes Nacionales for permitting the illegal takeover of the lands adjacent to those he has claimed.
News reports indicate that the lands were assigned to Tokio Motors by the past administration to pay a debt of RD$10 million for power plants sold by the company for use in public hospitals following Hurricane Georges. According to the Ministry of Public Health there is no contract, agreement or negotiation that substantiates this debt.
El Siglo newspaper did publish a letter from the Minister of Public Health Juan Octavio Ceballos where in 1999 he requests a credit from the Department of Customs for the amount of RD$10,074,600 for the power plants.
The Ministry of Environment is against the takeover of the area by Tokio Motors. President Hipólito Mejía has nevertheless given his go ahead to the transaction. There has been no opposition to the school built by the church parish.
A meeting is set for Monday, 8 January with Father Ruiz, the Mayor of Santo Domingo, Ministry of Environments to define the situation.
What is Conazucar up to?
The Consorcio Azucarero del Caribe's executives left for Mexico supposedly for the Christmas holidays and have not returned. The State Sugar Council (CEA) says that the Mexican company has not made the investments needed to repair the mills, as the contract between Conazucar and the Dominican state establishes. Conazucar says it has records that state it has made the investments. But the truth of the matter is that at present, there is only time, if repairs are made immediately, for two of the consortium's five sugar mills, Consuelo and Boca Chica to mill sugar cane by the March deadline. The other mills, Ozama, Haina and Quisqueya will not be able to operate because of the condition of abandon in which they are at present.
Victor Manuel Baez, director of the CEA says that the Mexicans owe US$6.3 million in rent money to the state for the mills. He said they are waiting for the contractual terms to expire to act.
Baez said there are other companies interested in taking over the operations if Conazucar abandons the project.
Consular invoice to be history
The legal consultant of the government Guido Gomez Mazara said that the consular invoice will be history as of this Friday. He said the consular invoice has only served to enrich Dominican consuls, and not much else. A longtime headache to business, the invoice is required to move merchandise. To legalize trade transactions, the consuls charge 25% of the fees in each transaction. Gomez Mazara also announced a reduction of US$30 on the cost of passports issued abroad. Passports for two years will now cost US$90.
Gasoline and diesel prices upped
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce set new prices for gasoline. Premium gasoline will sell for RD$40.38, up from RD$39.65. Regular gasoline will sell for RD$35.53 up from RD$33.80. Diesel will sell for RD$23.88, up from RD$23.34. Premium diesel will sell for RD$25.95 up from RD$25.41. When the Hydrocarbons Law was passed, consumers were misled to believe that fuel prices would decline in direct proportion to declines in world market fuel prices. Apparently, the formula for the price adjustments is not that simple.
Presidency not happy about disbursement of Spanish loans
President Hipólito Mejía said his government will not honor two Spanish loans. The payment of a RD$74.6 million loan disbursed by Matachana S.A., a Spanish firm to the Comedores Económicos (low cost meals served) and another for RD$58 million to the Inposdom (post office) by Sociedad de Desarrollo Postal, also of Spain are disputed by the government on grounds of illegalities in their procedures. The legal consultant said these disbursements are illegal, as international loans need congressional approval.
Temistocles Montas, former Technical Secretary of the Presidency when the loans were disbursed, defends the correct procedures saying that Resolution 399-98 of Congress approved the Programa de Marco de Cooperación Financiera Dominico-Hispano, the legal framework which provided for the financing of different projects for US$200 million.
The agreement was between the government of Spain and the government of the Dominican Republic.
The president of the Senate, Ramón Alburquerque now also concurs that the loans required specific congressional approval and not an umbrella treatment.
Legal advisor says government officers declare what they expect to steal in office
The legal advisor to the Executive Branch, Guido Gomez Mazara announced that the Presidency will send to Congress a proposal to reform the Ley sobre Declaración Jurada de Bienes, the law that requires government officers to declare at the start of office their assets and debts. He said he seeks the law to be reformed to oblige government officers to declare every two years and to present proof of payment of taxes for the amounts declared.
Speaking at the National Palace, he said last Friday, 5 January that the decision is because "here people project what they will steal and do not say what they have." He emphasized that the idea is to link the presentation of assets to the payment of taxes for these amounts.
Hoy newspaper reports Gómez saying that it would be good to find out if people that take a public position and declare RD$40 million in assets have ever paid taxes on those assets. He said this would be another contribution of the government of President Hipolito Mejia to the necessary transparency in the public exercise. The public declarations of PRD government officers have been especially scandalous, with most top cabinet members alleging to being multimillionaires, several declaring more than RD$100 million in assets.
Here come the Pan Am Games commissioners
Listin Diario reports that meetings to give the final go ahead to the city of Santo Domingo to host the July 2003 Pan American Games will be held in this capital city on Tuesday and Wednesday. The newspaper reports that already Pan American Sports Organization commissioners Felipe Muñoz (Mexico) and Jorge Herrera (Colombia) have arrived. Expected today are Michael Fennell (Jamaica), Jorge Nery Carvajal (Costa Rica) and Antonio Rodríguez (Argentina, Richard Potterkin (St. Lucia). They will review advances made by the Dominican organizing committee. Reportedly, the main issue the DR needs the commissioners to approve is the change to local financing of the construction of the athletes' village. Originally, a Spanish company with Spanish financing would have built the village. The village will now go up with Dominican financing and Dominican builders. During their stay, the commissioners will visit several of the venues where the games will take place and will meet with President Hipólito Mejía who has reiterated he accepts the challenge of the Games. The commissioners will prepare a report to be presented at the General Assembly of the Panamerican Sports Organization on 19 January in Panama City.
DR defeats Germany and Poland to win silver in Europe Cup
The Dominican national volleyball team defeated the national teams of Germany (3-0), and the Poland (3-2) to win the silver medal of the Cup of Nations, during the European Volleyball Championship held at the Bremen International Sports Arena in Germany. Russia, winner of the Sydney Olympics gold medal, won the first place in the event by defeating Germany.
Escogido continues to lead in baseball semi-finals
Pitcher Jose Lima gave his own show at the Estadio Quisqueya and helped the Escogido Lions extend their victory rally to six games. The Escogido leads the round robin. The Aguilas follow two games behind, and the Azucareros and the Estrellas are five games behind. For game schedule, see Calendar at http://www.dr1.com/daily/calendar.shtml
 TEAM  WON  LOST  PCT.  DIF.
 Escogido  6  0  1000  
 Aguilas  4  2  .667  2
 Azucareros  1  5  .167  5
 Estrellas  0  5  .167  5
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