2004 – Page 81

Deputy Pelegrin Castillo, whose minority party endorsed the PLD in the 2004 election, yesterday questioned whether Dominican members of Congress have any autonomy at all. He commented that legislators are subject to the circumstantial interests of the heads of the political parties, the President of the Republic, the special economic interest groups, and even the …

Read more…

President Leonel Fernandez declared his total financial worth to be RD$16 million in assets. He declared a debt of RD$2 million owed to Constructora Pena, the company belonging to his former minister of public works, Diandino Pena. During his previous administration that concluded four years ago, Fernandez had declared assets of RD$11 million. His most …

Read more…

It has only recently become public knowledge that the former Central Bank deputy governor, Felix Calvo, acted as president of a financial intermediary firm known as BONAOP and which is a subsidiary of Crediya, as reported in Hoy newspaper. A lawsuit filed by lawyers Jorge Lora Castillo and Gustavo Biaggi Pumarol, representing the Plaza Lama …

Read more…

Listin Diario reports today that former President Hipolito Mejia’s controversial chief of security, retired Colonel Pedro Julio (Pepe) Goico, left the country on Sunday headed for Paris after lawyers from the Castillo firm mentioned the possibility of bringing charges against him stemming from the accusations that Goico misused the Baninter credit card assigned to him …

Read more…

An investigation now underway in the National Police disputes the claim that officers who benefited from vehicles that had been recovered after having been reported stolen acted in “good faith,” as Police Chief Manuel de Jesus Perez Sanchez has used to excuse the irregularity. Diario Libre reports today that an analysis carried out by the …

Read more…

Tropical Storm Jeanne is forecast to brush by the northeastern coast of the Dominican Republic as it makes its way westward. DR1 Weather & Beyond Forum is monitoring the storm as it moves through the Caribbean. The distance it would be passing areas such as Samana could bring intense rains and winds. Weather forecasters say …

Read more…

Presidential Technical Secretary Temistocles Montas sent a letter on Friday to Senate leader Andres Bautista, requesting that the legislature eliminate the clause added to the fiscal reform bill that levies a 25% tax on corn syrup sweetener imports. The Fernandez government had asked the Senate not to make any changes to the bill sent by …

Read more…

The Central Bank says that inflation this year will be 10% more than originally estimated. The nation’s economic authorities are now forecasting year-end inflation of 45-50% instead of the 35% originally predicted. The Central Bank upheld its previous forecast of a 1% economic decline this year, despite second-quarter growth of 2.2% that pushed the first …

Read more…

Franco Uccelli of Bear & Stearns comments today on the Central Bank’s recently released first-quarter figures that indicate the need for reductions in government spending. According to the Central Bank report published over the weekend, the nation has recorded a non-financial public-sector (NFPS) deficit of RD$12.5 billion (3.5% of Gross Domestic Product), a quasi-fiscal (Central …

Read more…

Dominicans nationwide continue to suffer the effects of the propane gas shortage that has gripped the country since the Mejia administration lost the election in May 2004. The shortage of propane primarily affects taxi drivers and households that seek to purchase the fuel sold at the LPG stations at the subsidized price of $25 per …

Read more…