2008 – Page 133

Supreme Court President Jorge Subero Isa is asking for central government and judiciary officers that have accumulated unexplained great wealth to be investigated. He says that one of the best ways to fight drug trafficking and corruption is to determine where the goods that are magically exhibited by people have come from. Jorge Isa lamented …

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Journalist Juan Bolivar Diaz calls for an end to pretentious displays of wealth by government officials as well as to impunity, which he says are behind the drug trade’s penetration into Dominican society. “Crime in all its manifestations has found fertile ground in which to multiply in this country where the quest for a quick …

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Economist Jose Luis de Ramon told Hoy that the government needs a radical cut in spending and to reduce its size if it is to survive rising international costs and the rising fiscal deficit. De Ramon says the government has said there will be a 2.3% GDP deficit, when what is needed is a 1.5% …

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Bernardo Vega comments in Hoy on what needs to be tackled to avoid serious balance of payment problems and the depreciation of the peso. Vega concludes a devaluation will be avoided only if the government can achieve a budgetary surplus. He blamed the strong budgetary deficit on the re-election campaign overspending. He called for transparency. …

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The Dominican Post Office (Inposdom) announced that the city of Santo Domingo has been assigned the zip code 11211. Towns in the interior will have the zip code 51101. He says these codes can immediately be used in mail correspondence, as reported in El Caribe.

The PLD Political Committee has approved the proposed constitutional reform that President Leonel Fernandez will introduce to Congress on 16 August. According to Listin Diario, the Committee leaves it up to President Fernandez to decide whether to change the Constitution so that he can run for President again. PLD Secretary General and Senate president Reinaldo …

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The Customs Department (DGA) has seized 200 sacks of illegal pharmaceuticals worth an estimated RD$40 million. The drugs were found during a series of raids around the city of Santo Domingo in five separate stings. During the raids, officials seized three vehicles, guns, cell phones, cash and bank account numbers. Customs director Miguel Cocco says …

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Bread that was sold last week for RD$3 is now being sold for RD$5. El Caribe writes that some colmados will maintain the original price until their current stock of bread runs out and then implement the increases when new batches of bread come in. Bakers increased the price of bread after the government removed …

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Hoy is reporting that officials at the Central Electoral Board (JCE) have uncovered attempts to get Jose Rafael Juan Pula a fake birth certificate, so that he could qualify to play for the Colorado Rockies. Reports indicate that Jhonathan Leyba initiated the fake birth certificate process and tried to get Pula registered in the books …

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The National Diabetes, Endocrinology and Nutrition Institute (INDEN) reports that between 7% and 8% of the population suffers from diabetes and is calling for increased awareness about the disease. According to Dr. Ammar Ibrahim the incidence of diabetes has been on the increase during the last decade. He estimates that by 2025 the number of …

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