2005 – Page 131

Westmont, the company that wants to install two coal-fueled generators in the DR has allegedly been involved in bribery to acquire electrical contracts in other countries, as reported in Diario Libre. Westmont appears in the ” 2001 Global Report on Corruption” for having used bribery to get an energy privatization contract in Tanzania. The company …

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Diario Libre reports that after questioning former General Comptroller Federico Lalane Jose as a witness in the case against Manuel Marino Guichardo Pena, Judge Vanessa Acosta has sent Guichardo to trial for allegedly requiring payments from people and/or contractors in order to supposedly expedite payments that were behind schedule or not fully documented. The case …

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Two men were handed over in extradition to the US by the DR authorities yesterday. Diario Libre reports that Luis Aladino and Johan Moreno were put on board a Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) plane that arrived at Las Americas International Airport at 10:00 am. They were flown to the US escorted by six US justice …

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The National Drug Control Department (DNCD) arrested 13 men: two Venezuelans and 11 Dominicans, involved in the seizure of 76 kilos 130 grams of cocaine in a boat near Caracoles Beach in Hatillo, Azua. According to the DNCD, the drug was in the possession of an international drug trafficking network. This is the second seizure …

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Former security assistant to ex-president Hipolito Mejia, Colonel Pedro Julio “Pepe” Goico Guerrero defended his use of a credit card issued by the failed Baninter bank, which had been issued for the former President’s expenses. According to Hoy, Goico stated that he regrets not having purchased “the Caribbean Sea and the Eiffel Tower” with the …

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Keith Smart, assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors, has been entrusted with taking the Dominican men’s basketball team to the Pre World Basketball Championship, scheduled for Santo Domingo from 24 August through 4 September. Smart has been the Warriors’ assistant coach since 2003, after spending three seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and brings 18 …

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During the month of July, the government plans to pay out the second pay raise, of 15%, to the public servants on the nation’s payroll. The government will have to find an additional RD$1.38 billion in order to achieve this. El Caribe reports that this will raise government employees’ salaries above the limit established by …

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The Dominican industrial and agricultural sectors will be the most affected by the start up of the DR-CAFTA agreement, according to business council, CONEP. The document says that the free trade agreement with the United States may well portend the loss of nearly half a million jobs in the industrial and agro-industrial sectors. As reported …

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The National Association of Young Entrepreneurs (ANJE) establishes its position that government spending should be the focus of integrated fiscal reform. ANJE observes that in recent years, government current spending prevails over government capital spending. ANJE, in a publication in Saturday’s El Caribe, highlights that there has been a consistent increase in the number of …

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Last week, the president of the L. Leon Jimenes Group, Jose Leon, said that the group would let the Dominican people know what should be expected from the government. Today, all the daily papers carry a full-page announcement by Grupo Leon Jimenes detailing their vision for a better Dominican Republic. Basically the document compiles most …

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