2008 – Page 256

Doctor Angel Chan Aquino, who performed the country’s first open heart surgery, has died. He was 85. Chan had been suffering from pancreatic cancer for the last nine months. Chan was a practicing physician for 58 years and carried out the country’s first open heart operation in 1974. Chan began practicing medicine in 1949 and …

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So you thought that dead people didn’t need money? Well, you were wrong. According to Hoy, funeral costs have increased for both families and for the Santo Domingo municipality (ADN). This has forced the ADN to assign RD$74 million to public service costs, of which 60% will be spent on maintenance for Santo Domingo’s cemeteries. …

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Dominican-born author Junot Diaz has won yet another prize for his magnificent novel “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao.” Yesterday it was announced that Diaz had won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The award is accompanied by a US$10,000 prize. Diaz has said that it took him 11 years to write the book. …

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Dominican national team players, center Erika Araki and attacker Bethania de la Cruz have led their team, Toray Arrows, to victory in the Japanese Women’s Premier Volleyball Tournament. Araki was named most valuable player of the league. Likewise, Bethania de la Cruz led the average scores for all players in the league. The Dominican women’s …

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Plaza Lama supermarket is advertising red onions for RD$9.95lb, corn for RD$10.95 the cob, potatoes for RD$13.95lb, salad tomatoes for RD$7.95lb, green bananas for RD$2.95ea, carrots for RD$6.50ea, red peppers for RD$17.95lb, papayas for RD$9.95lb, chicken thighs for RD$26.95lb. La Cadena supermarket is advertising chicken for RD$29.95lb, Goya white beans for RD$14.95lb, Pan de agua …

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President Leonel Fernandez has enlisted the support of former PRD legislator and Mayor of Santo Domingo, merengue legend Johnny Ventura. As reported in Diario Libre, at the event, President Fernandez announced that he would win with 72% of the vote. Ventura himself announced his support for the President’s reelection at the United Palace congregation event …

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A month and a half to go for the 16 May Election Day, and former President Hipolito Mejia and his PPH faction of the PRD announced over the weekend that they would campaign for Miguel Vargas Maldonado, the PRD candidate. Vargas served as minister of Public Works during the 2000-2004 Mejia administration. Up to this …

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Currently at US$8.57 billion, the DR’s public debt represents 26% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. As reported in the Listin Diario, US$4.5 billion was contracted at a fixed interest rate, and US$4.01 billion at a variable interest rate. A Ministry of Hacienda report says that the debt increased by US$191.6 million in the last …

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Chamber of Deputies president Julio Cesar Valentin says that this week the PLD-majority chamber is due to approve an Executive Power bill, creating the National Tourism Development Institute (Indetur). Diario Libre describes the bill as controversial, saying that it includes articles that violate the Constitution. For example, the bill gives the institute roles that are …

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Santo Domingo’s fire chief General Oscar Guillermo Garcia is warning condominiums of the fire hazards in their underground parking areas, as reported in Listin Diario. Garcia said that residents should check to ensure that safety measures are in place in case of a fire in the parking lot. He said that as more vehicles are …

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