CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's vice-president said yesterday that Hugo Chavez is still fighting for his life.
Nicolas Maduro, Chavez's self-appointed successor, said on television that his boss "is battling there for his health, for his life, and we're accompanying him".
The vice-president had characterised Chavez's condition similarly on December 20, saying the president "is fighting a great battle... for his life, for his health".
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KINGSTON, Jamaica, Gleaner - Although long in coming, the Simpson Miller administration has gone public with plans, developed by the Entertainment Advisory Board, to drive growth in the creative industries. These plans include the regular staging of events, such as the Arts in the Park concert held recently at Hope Gardens in St Andrew, to showcase emerging talents to business executives in the international entertainment industry.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Gleaner - AGRICULTURE MINISTER Roger Clarke has shot down fears of Jamaicans consuming horse meat as beef, as reports surfaced in the United Kingdom recently that DNA evidence proved that horse meat was passed off in beef burgers in Builth Wells, Wales.
"We do not import beef from Europe, so that is not a consideration. The beef that is consumed in Jamaica is either produced locally or imported from The United States, Australia, South America, New Zealand, Panama and Costa Rica. So have no fear, we are not getting horse meat here," Clarke assured.
GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Stabroek News - Succession in politics and the politics of succession can be rather thorny issues. Just over a month ago, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands announced that she was abdicating, at the age of 75 and after a reign of 33 years, in favour of her son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, who will become King on April 30. Her fellow monarch, Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, even though she is almost 87 and has been Queen for 61 years, shows no sign, however, of stepping down to allow her son, Charles, to ascend to the throne.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – One after his ruling Democratic Labour Party (DLP) scored a narrow two seat majority in the general election, Prime Minister Freundel Stuart has announced the composition of his Cabinet dropping former Commerce and Trade minister Haynesley Benn. In a television broadcast on Thursday night, Prime Minister Stuart said the new members of his Cabinet had been chosen in pursuit of his commitment to maintaining the highest standards of leadership.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – The Trinidad and Tobago government has announced plans to give soldiers powers similar to that of the police as it moves to crack down on an escalation of crime in the country.
The coalition People’s Partnership government is tabling legislation Friday that will give members of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force (TTDF) authority to function and perform the duties of a police officer.
HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC - An outbreak of gastroenteritis has struck almost 30 patients and staff at the King Edward VIII Memorial Hospital. This has resulted in the quarantine of one of the wards at the institution. A spokesperson from the Bermuda Hospital Board said access to Gordon Ward is likely to be restricted through Friday. Five staff members
HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC –The Bermuda government says it will crack down on tax dodgers who owe it a whopping US$85 million in unpaid taxes. A Finance Ministry spokesman said the sum is the total amount of unpaid tax receivables more than 90 days old at the end of 2012. The bulk of the figure, which does not include social insurance contributions, comes from unpaid payroll tax and represents almost 10 per cent of government’s estimated $871 million revenue for the coming financial year.
WASHINGTON, CMC – A top United States Department of Homeland Security official in charge of deportations has stepped down in the aftermath of a flap over the release of Caribbean and other detainees.
Gary Mead’s departure comes after the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency on Monday released hundreds of immigrants from jails and detention centers across the country.
KINGSTON, JAMAICA, CMC - The authorities are trying to locate the source of noxious fumes that forced the evacuation of several employees and visitors of the Central Sorting Office of the Post and Telecoms Department in the Corporate area on Thursday.
According to media reports more than 600 people were evacuated and some were rushed to the nearby Kingston PUblic Hospital for treatment.
Classes at several schools in the vicinity of the Central Sorting Office were also suspended because as the fumes started to affect the institutions.