El Caribe newspaper continues to report on the congressional manipulation of electoral districts ("gerrymandering") to benefit the party in power. If all proposed motions are approved, the size of government would increase by one third, reports the newspaper. PRD deputy Radhames Gonzalez is confident that Congress will pass his motion to create three more provinces - Santo Domingo East, Santo Domingo North and Santo Domingo West this week. According to the newspaper, however, the creation of two more provinces is being lobbied for - Esperanza (Valverde) and Villa Riva (Duarte). Furthermore, the newspaper says there are bills in Congress that would create 22 municipalities and 70 municipal districts, a move that would call for five more senate seats and 22 city governments, in addition to hundreds of councilors, and other government posts that would be created as a result of the political manipulation of geography. El Caribe also reports that Congress has received proposals to create the municipalities of Juan Dolio, Cristobal, Jaquimeyes, Fundacion, Pueblo Viejo, Sabana Yegua, Tabara Arriba, Uvilla, Los Alcarrizos, Guerra, Pedro Brand, La Victoria and Los Cacaos, Sabana Perdida, San Jose de Mendoza, Peralvillo, Maizal, Guatapanal and Mella. The new provinces, municipalities and districts mean more lucrative jobs for those with political influence. "This is going to make a bigger state as each territorial division calls for new government bodies, new officers and spending, and there will be little left over for capital investments and social spending," said Professor Faustino Collado. "When a territory is divided, the same centralism that prevails in government remains. The new area is not going to have the same resources - all that occurs is a distribution of poverty. There is no real administrative reform or decentralization." t
The Executive Branch signed into effect Law 166-03, thereby increasing the allotment for city governments from 6% to 10% of the National Budget. President Mejia also announced he would send a bill to Congress to authorize the import of tax-free vehicles for mayors and vice-mayors.
The men of President Hipolito Mejia have petitioned that the Central Electoral Board (JCE) reject the plebiscite called for Sunday, 12 October, whereby PRD party members would pronounce their opinion on re-election within the party. Labor Secretary Milton Ray Guevara led a committee of the PPH faction (including Agriculture Minister Eligio Jaquez, Customs Department Director Vicente Sanchez Baret, Interior & Police Minister Franco Badia) that supports the re-election of President Mejia, which submitted the opposing motion to the JCE. The plebiscite was called by the PRD party president and secretary general, and is supported by the seven pre-candidates hoping to challenge President Mejia for the PRD candidacy for the 2004 election. The president of the disputes chamber of the JCE, Salvador Ramos, said he would issue a decision shortly.
Hoy newspaper's front-page story highlights the results of a poll conducted by the firm Sigma Dos for the Consorcio Iberoamericano de Empresas de Investigacion de Mercados y Asesoramiento (CIMA) on the performance of Latin American heads of state. Some 6,094 persons were surveyed in 14 regional countries from August to September. On a country per country basis, President Hipolito Mejia of the Dominican Republic has the lowest approval rating for his performance as President by his compatriots. The citizens of Argentina ranked their new President the highest, with an 80% acceptance rate. In descending order, the poll listed the head of government of Colombia in second place (75%), followed by Chile (49%), Ecuador (38%), Mexico and Brazil (35%), Puerto Rico (33%), Panama 15%, Venezuela (10%), Bolivia and Uruguay (9%), Peru (7%) and the Dominican Republic (6%). The pollsters asked citizens of voting age whether the President's work performance was "very good", "good", "neither good nor bad", "bad" or "very bad". Of those questioned in the DR, 1% said the performance of President Mejia was very good, 5% said it was good, 15% said it was neither good nor bad, 33% described it as bad and 47% said it was very bad. The most pressing problem for 34% of Dominicans is the economy, followed by corruption (33%), and unemployment (27%). According to the survey, 92% of those polled perceive the DR to be on the wrong track, up from 79% who felt this way when polled by the same company in February. President Mejia received an 85% disapproval rate for his administration, while 14% approved his government and 1% said they did not have an opinion.
Technical Secretary of the Presidency Carlos Despradel said that JP Morgan does not have any in-depth knowledge of the economic problems that affect the Dominican Republic. To correct this, he invited their economic analysts to travel to the DR. According to Despradel, the present economic situation was caused by the collapse of Baninter and the financial problems that have plagued the Bancredito and Mercantil banks. He made the statement in reference to that firm's most recent newsletter on the Dominican Republic, in which it is mentioned that re-election is a priority for the present administration. Despradel said that the nation's economic team is not involved in the re-election process and confirmed the IMF stand-by arrangement is on hold until a committee can evaluate the buyback agreement the government has signed with the Spanish electricity company, Union Fenosa. For the JP Morgan report, see http://www.dr1.com/news/2003/100703_JPMorgan.pdf
The Central Bank announced yesterday afternoon a unification of the exchange market, with the peso-dollar rate allowed to float according to supply and demand. According to the plan, all dollar operations would be transacted in the open market, in compliance with the government's promise to the IMF to adopt such a procedure by year's end. Those generating hard currencies will no longer be obliged to exchange their dollars at the Central Bank, but the government needs to buy dollars for its foreign service, military purchases, foreign debt and petroleum imports on the open market. El Caribe interprets the unexpected announcement as a concession made for the benefit of the IMF and to encourage them to return to the agreement that was suspended after the government took on new debt for the Union Fenosa deal. This deal at the present time had not figured into the original IMF accord, by which the government would receive US$1 billion from the IMF and multilateral organizations, based on the fulfillment of the terms set out. So far, the government has received only an initial disbursement of US$110 million.
President Hipolito Mejia urged the Senate to approve the bills creating a 5% tax on exports and a 2% tax on imports resubmitted by the Executive Branch this week. Last week, the Supreme Court of Justice declared the surcharges to be in violation of the Constitution. This is the second time the Executive Branch has sent the bill to the Senate. Earlier, the Technical Secretary of the Presidency had removed the bill. Marisol Vicens, the president of the National Association of Entrepreneurs (ANJE), told El Caribe that the government's attitude of insisting on the tax only generates greater uncertainty among producers. Relatedly, a spokesman for the Dominican Exporters Association (Adoexpo) said the government should return the RD$95 million it collected with the surcharge. Horacio Alvarez of Adoexpo said the tax was a failure and pointed to the fact that the government had planned to collect RD$3 billion from August to December with the levy. In the first two months, however, only RD$95 million was received. Alvarez argued that the proposed 5% tax on exports affects the competitiveness of Dominican exports.
Free zone workers will see wage increases this month, as the National Salaries Committee approved a 15% increase for employees of free zone manufacturing companies, effective 19 October. An additional 10% will go into effect 90 days later, for an overall increase of 25% by January 2004. The minimum wage of free zone sector workers is currently RD$2,877 per month, which would increase to RD$3,3098.55 this month, and to RD$3,596.25 in January 2004. The free zone sector employs approximately 190,000 employees, according to a report in El Caribe.
Armed Forces Minister Jose Miguel Soto Jimenez confirmed he will travel to Iraq this Thursday to visit the 302 Dominican troops stationed in Diwaniya. His trip will last 10 days. The Dominican troops are in Iraq as part of the Plus Ultra battalion that includes soldiers from Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras and Spain.
The police announced a permanent patrol of the stretch of the Duarte Highway that runs through Villa Altagracia. The move is hoped to discourage the thugs that have taken over the area, especially at night. Several motorists have been injured by rocks thrown at them by the thugs who hide in the bushes that border the highway, especially at the points of kilometers 40 and 45.
Dominican Manny Ramirez was the hero of the decisive fifth game to conclude the American League Division Season last night. At stake was a berth in the American League Championship Series that starts this Wednesday, pitting the Boston Red Sox against the New York Yankees in the Bronx. The Red Sox won the final game, after making a comeback from a 2-0 start. Ramirez batted a three-run homer in the sixth inning, breaking a 1-1 tie. Pitching that evening for the Red Sox was Pedro Martinez, who kept the Oakland As at bay until he tired in the eighth inning and was relieved. For more on last night's game, see: http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/articles/2003/10/07/five_star_win/
It hadn't happened since 1908, but the Chicago Cubs finally made it to the post-season series. Sammy Sosa's team will now go up against the Florida Marlins for the National League slot in the World Series. The Cubs defeated the Atlanta Braves 5-1 on Sunday. The National League Championship Series starts today at Chicago's Wrigley Field.
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