2004 – Page 239

The Economist lambasted President Hipolito Mejia in an article dated 12 February. “The President has been reckless in politics as well as economics,” reads the article, which opens with a comment on how Mejia was booed at the recent Caribbean baseball tournament, despite the DR team winning the opening game. “Having presided over an economic …

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Yesterday’s session in the Chamber of Deputies aimed at passing the controversial Preferential Presidential Vote, also known as the Ley de Lemas, fell short yesterday. As expected, the necessary quorum was not achieved, and when the Congressional president closed the session, only 51 deputies were present. Opponents of the now-moribund law make up the majority …

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The Central Electoral Board (JCE) publishes in the press today its 11 February resolution whereby the presidential candidates for the three leading political parties will be: Leonel Antonio Fernandez Reyna for the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD); Rafael Eduardo Estrella Virella, presidential candidate, and Jose Hazim, vice presidential candidate, for the Social Christian Reformist Party (PRSC); …

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Hatuey Decamps, who has been thwarted in his attempts to become the PRD candidate and ousted from his position as party President by President Hipolito Mejia, declared yesterday that he thought the opinion poll by Penn & Schoen was overly-optimistic regarding Mejia’s popularity. By Decamps’ estimate, the President would receive just 8% of the vote, …

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Hatuey Decamps, the ousted president of the PRD, told El Caribe on 13 February that five of the Central Electoral Board (JCE) judges respond to instructions from Agriculture Minister Eligio Jaquez, one of the leaders of the PPH faction of the PRD that is backing the re-election efforts of President Mejia. He named these as …

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El Caribe reports that the Central Electoral Board (JCE) has contracted the services of three messenger companies – Oficina Express, Ray Express and Salcedo y Asociados – to deliver letters to 666,000 voters who have been relocated to new polling stations not listed on their voting cards. These voters must visit the JCE offices to …

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American Beverage Company (AmBev), the world’s fifth largest brewer and Brazil’s leading beverage company, announced today its decision to enter the Dominican Republic’s market, competing in both the beer and soft drink arenas. The company announced today an agreement with Embotelladora Dominicana, C. por A. (PepsiCo’s exclusive bottler). As per the agreement, AmBev will purchase …

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Diario Libre newspaper’s Adriano Miguel Tejada analyzes the crux of the country’s problems and reaches the conclusion that it is neither electricity nor the exchange rate. What the real problem is, according to Tejada, is the lack of respect for the principle of citizenship, which includes the concept of equality before the law. He mentions …

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The stalled agreement between the Dominican government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is officially back on track. After a pause of over five months, a revised agreement has been negotiated and was signed yesterday. The first disbursement under the new terms of the deal will amount to US$66 million, with the power sector earmarked …

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President Hipolito Mejia said that he hoped the re-establishment of the IMF agreement would help restore peace and calm in the Dominican Republic. He described the agreement as an achievement reached by the government in spite of all its detractors within the opposition PLD party, which according to the President tried to block the path …

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