More than a third of Dominicans (38%) expect their economic situation, as well as their family's, to be better in 2006, whereas 33% believe it will be worse and 17% say it will remain the same, according to the Listin-Hamilton poll published by Listin Diario yesterday. When asked about 2007, 42% believe they will be better off, 36% think it will be worse, 17% say it will be the same, and 11% said they did not know. The poll shows no difference of opinion between men and women though there are variations based on age, region, and party sympathy.
Diario Libre reports that President Leonel Fernandez reacted by saying that 56% of the population understands that things are better now, pointing out that 42% said things are not good and 2% do not know, thus 56% believes things are better. Fernandez said that the poll places the population's perception in good perspective regarding what the government is doing.
Three former government officials who served in the Hipolito Mejia administration are under investigation by the Department for the Prevention of Corruption (DEPRECO), for the alleged over-valuation by RD$500 million of land expropriated in the Puerto Escondido community of Azua, after the US Agency for International Development (USAID) submitted a complaint to the National Ethics Commission. Listin Diario reports that former Administrative Secretary of the Presidency Rafael Calderon, former National Treasurer Pastora Mendez, and former assistant accountant Jesus Vasquez, are the officials who are being investigated, according to DEPRECO Director Octavio Lister. DEPRECO informed that the past administration paid out RD$339 million for a plot of land in Azua that was only valued at RD$34 million. The sale took place in 1983 but the payments were not made until 2004 to the owners of two companies-Puerto Escondido and Agricola Ganadera-that include relatives of former Administrative Secretary of the Presidency, Flores Estrella. Lister explained that his department is carrying out appraisals in order to determine the exact value of the land. Also under scrutiny is whether the former officials engaged in irregularities by paying a debt of more than RD$500 million with internal bonds
Diario Libre indicates the three former officials have already been questioned at DEPRECO.
The European Union will invest EUR52 million (RD$2 billion) in the Dominican educational system with the aim of guaranteeing students' access to basic education classrooms, better quality standards and lower drop out rates. According to Hoy, part of the money will be used to make the Ministry of Education's organization and budget structure more efficient. This was announced by the EU representative in the DR, Dino Sinigallia, Education Minister Alejandrina German, and the Director of the National Office for European Development Funds (ONFED) Onofre Rojas. The first disbursement will be of EUR3.8 million and will be used to initiate and develop a true reform of the educational system and diminish deficiencies in centers and faculties within the system.
Listin Diario reports that German spoke about the significance of this contribution for the strengthening of education in the forthcoming years. Sinigallia said that education is a high-priority sector for the Dominican government as well as for the EU, and that the Commission he presides is leading international support for this commitment. Rojas pointed out that the first disbursement will be allocated to the preparatory phase and for the strengthening of the goals of the education sector.
The Senate has called for new public hearings for the proposed artificial island project to be built off the coast of Santo Domingo. According to Diario Libre, the hearings will be held tomorrow, Wednesday, at 10:00 am in the Congress building's National Assembly Hall. The Ministry of Public Works signed the contract with Santo Domingo Re-Development, Ltd, represented by Eulogio Santaella, for the construction, development, and operation of Novo Mundo XXI, an ambitious mega-project that has caused controversy. Meanwhile, the Southern Coast Neighborhood Associations is opposing the project because according to them it will only serve to foster corruption, it is against the law, and represents business for only a small group of investors. Umberto Henriquez, representing the neighborhoods, read out a 16-point list and stated that the sea should never be negotiated. He stated that the privatization of more than 30 beaches and sale of national parks is sufficient.
El Caribe reports that a previous hearing, set for 26 October, was cancelled as only the project developers and the media showed up. The new hearing is expected to draw more people, including individuals and institutions related to conservation, neighborhood associations, architects, and landscapers. The neighborhood associations argue that the project will lead to social segregation that will be embarrassing for the city's inhabitants. The project is also opposed by the Academy of Sciences which will issue the results of research it has carried out to identify the possible consequences of the construction. Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) professor Amparo Chantada, who lives in the area, said the project will privatize our sea. She is concerned that no environmental impact report has been presented for the project.
The Coordinating Office of the National Commission of Trade Negotiations (CNNC) was created by a decree issued by President Leonel Fernandez, who also appointed Julio Ortega Tous as its Executive Secretary. The office will be in charge of directing and coordinating all aspects related to the trade negotiations in progress and the proposals for the definition of an international policy in the DR. It will also coordinate foreign cooperation funds aimed at strengthening the country's trade policy, especially those coming from the IDB, the European Union and other multi-lateral sources.
The prices of some basic foodstuff have gone up over the past two weeks, due to higher transportation costs and the speculation of wholesale businesses, as reported in Listin Diario. Products affected include rice, cod, herring, pasta, cooking oil, red beans, onions, garlic and potatoes whereas the prices of plantains, yucca, pumpkin, and detergent soap have remained the same.
A new overpass will be built by the Ministry of Public Works at the intersection of 27 de Febrero and Ortega y Gasset avenues, with an estimated cost of RD$200 million, as reported in Clave Digital. The project will involve the demolition of several businesses and homes in the southwestern quadrant of the intersection. General Director of Planning and Investment Programming Miguel A. Logrono said expropriations will have to be made but the exact number of businesses and homes that will be affected has not been determined yet. The project will eliminate the traffic light at the corner and will consist of a one-leaf clover solution that will make the flow of traffic constant for drivers entering 27 de Febrero from Ortega y Gasset and vice-versa. Grupo Modesto is the company hired by the Ministry to design and build the overpass which will be designed in a manner that will allows the extension of Ortega y Gasset to the Malecon in a second phase of the project. This intersection is the only one in the stretch between Av. Winston Churchill to the bridges over the Ozama River that interrupts the expressway.
Diario Libre reports that the project will be finished next May. It is opposed by the El Vergel neighborhood association, which believes that their area will be affected as it will be divided in two.
The price of the US dollar continued to drop this week in the local market when it closed yesterday between RD$33.50 and RD$33.60, a 40 to 50 cent decrease compared to last Friday, according to Listin Diario. Exchange agents were selling the currency at RD$33.60 and were buying it at RD$33.20. Banks were selling between RD$33.70 and RD$33.75 and buying between RD$32.70 and RD$32.80. A source indicated that the downward trend is set to continue because there is little demand for the currency on the market. The Euro was also dropping on Monday and was being bought for RD$37.00 and RD$37.50, and sold for RD$39.25 and RD$39.70.
Three men will be turned over to US authorities today by the National Drug Control Department. Lidio Arturo Nin Terrero and Tirso Cuevas Nin are involved in the Quirino Ernesto Paulino Castillo drug trafficking case whereas Christian de Jesus Ramos was a gang member in New York and is also involved in trafficking. According to Diario Libre, US ambassador Hans Hertell said that these extraditions showed that the DR has an interest in processing traffickers. Attorney General Francisco Dominguez Brito warned that all those named in the Quirino case would be punished, whether they are politicians, military, police or influential people.
El Caribe reports that the men would be turned over to Drug Enforcement Agency agents at 11:30am, at an unspecified air terminal. They will be tried in the Southern District Court of New York. Gaston Ramos is an alleged murderer who was planned to kill Nin Terrero.
New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez became the American League's Most Valuable Player for the second time in three seasons, after beating David Ortiz, Vladimir Guerrero and Manny Ramirez, who came second, third and fourth in the voting. Alex was born in the US of Dominican parents, and the other three are Dominicans. Alex came in first with 16 votes, second with 11 votes, and third with one vote, totaling 331 points. The award is given by the US Baseball Commentators Association.
Diario Libre reports that Rodriguez had a .321 batting average, and hit 48 home runs, helped make 130 runs, made 124 runs himself and stole 21 bases during the regular season with the Yankees.
Last Wednesday, Boston Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez married journalist Carolina Cruz in a private civil ceremony, according to the bride's mother Elvira Rodriguez, who did not disclose further details, saying the couple would do so later. Diario Libre reports that the couple went to Puerto Plata and Samana for the weekend. Martinez and Cruz have been seen together in different places over the last two years but had always claimed they were just friends.
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