Amidst challenges of impropriety and fraudulent NGOs, President Leonel Fernandez signed the 2008 Budget and Law for Public Spending, officially making it law. The total budget is for RD$300 billion.
Senate president Reinaldo Pared Perez (PLD-National District) challenged Chamber of Deputies president Julio Cesar Valentin's (PLD-National District) claims that funds for ruling party senators' and deputies' covert non-governmental organizations were included in the 2008 National Budget. Valentin and PRSC party deputy Radhames Castro claimed that several senators, including Cristina Lizardo, Charlie Mariotti, Euclides Sanchez and Tommy Galan, are beneficiaries of millions in allotments for NGOs. Cristina Lizardo, quoted in Listin Diario, denied having an NGO and Mariotti called the claims lies.
Perez, quoted in Hoy, lamented the fact that 'peers' in the Chamber, beginning with Valentin, would make such claims. Perez says that he had agreed to meet with Valentin to form a bi-chamber commission to study the budget, but that Valentin chose to expedite the passing of the budget.
Perez continued bashing Valentin by exclaiming that the Chamber president had forgotten that Perez was the PLD secretary general and said that the deputies, with their attitudes, were tainting the honor of the National Congress, where the PLD is majority for the first time. Perez even went as far as saying that he'd be willing to leave the Senate if the Chamber proved there were improprieties with the handling of NGOs. Euclides Sanchez, senator for La Vega, said he would also leave if his name could be linked to an NGO.
Santiago city councilors are following in the footsteps of San Cristobal city councilors and are arguing for pay raises claiming that the RD$44,000 they receive in per diems per month is an embarrassment. Hoy writes that councilors aspire to have their monthly per-diems raised to RD$90,000 and that these be converted to salaries as is established by the Municipal Organization Law. Hipolito Martinez, a PLD city councilor, says that the pay that city councilors receive in Santiago is an embarrassment and argued that colleagues in other communities that have less to do earn almost three times as much as the salary they aspire to. The PLD councilor said that "if what happened in San Cristobal was an embarrassment because it was too much, what is happening in Santiago is an embarrassment because it is too low." Martinez pleaded his case adding that the average councilor remuneration is between RD$75,000 and RD$100,000 and added that municipal law reserves 25% of the budget for the payment of personnel salary.
President Leonel Fernandez, assuming his role as PLD party president, ordered that the municipal councilor pay raises be revoked. President Fernandez presided a meeting of the political commission that announced that party members that violate the disposition could be expelled from the party. The raises caused a public stir earlier last week, when the mayor of San Cristobal Jose Montas protested, saying the money would be better used by the firemen, garbage collection and other municipal services.
The special commission appointed by the Executive Branch has yet to find a company meeting their requirements to appraise the 50% Shell stake in Dominican Petroleum Refinery (Refidomsa). Hacienda Minster Vicente Bengoa said that none of the 12 companies that bid to carry out the appraisal met all requirements. In addition to Bengoa, other members of the commission to choose the appraiser are Cesar Pina Toribio, Marino Vinicio Castillo, Abel Rodriguez del Orbe, Mariano Sanchez and Viriato Sanchez. Bengoa said that a new bidding process will begin in the next few days and added that the purchase of Shell's actions will be transparent.
The Ministry of Environment and seven other state ministries have signed a memorandum providing rules for the upcoming whale watching season that starts next Tuesday, 15 January and ends in March in Samana. The Ministry of Tourism, the Navy, the Samana Bay Boat Owners Association, the Center for Conservation and Eco-development for Samana Bay, the Samana Tourist Service, the Dominican Marine Studies Foundation and ATEMAR signed the agreement as a way to guarantee the sustainability and conservation of the mating whales in Samana Bay. The memorandum controls which boats are authorized to carry passengers, the number of boats that can gather at the observation points and the distance the boats must keep from the whales. Whale watching season generates between RD$50 million and RD$60 million. 35,000 people are expected to take the whale watching trips this year.
Central Electoral Board judge Aura Celeste Fernandez is getting some heat after her husband Guillermo Moreno accepted the Movimiento Unidad y Cambio's (MIUCA) presidential candidacy for the 2008 election. Listin Diario says that fellow JCE judge Eddy Olivares commented that Fernandez had his full support and that she shouldn't resign. Administrative Chamber judge Roberto Rosario also voiced his support for Fernandez to continue at the JCE. Judge John Giuliani quoted Electoral Law 275-97, article 4, states that there can be no kinship between a JCE official and a presidential candidate. The law does make the exception for judges already in their posts when presidential candidates are announced. Diario Libre writes that if Fernandez decides to stay, she could take a leave of absence until after the presidential election on 16 May, in order to avoid any conflict of interest.
President Leonel Fernandez officially declared 2008 as the Year of Health. The event took place at the Presidential Palace with the participation of Health Minister Bautista Rojas Gomez, Education Minister Alejandrina German, president of the Dominican Medical College Waldo Ariel Suero and Pan American Health Organization (OPS) country representative Ana Cristina Nogueira. Nogueira said that she is convinced that the declaration of 2008 as the year of health will help the DR advance in its fulfillment of the Millennium Development Goals.
Interior and Police Minister Franklin Almeyda Rancier is asking Tourism Minister Felix Jimenez to submit in writing the classification of the Hotel Hispaniola. Almeyda would like to know it if a 3, 4 or 5 star hotel. The request comes after competing businesses disputed that Led nightclub at the hotel was allowed to stay open beyond closing hours established by the presidential alcohol beverages decree. They argue that the clientele of the nightclub is made up primarily by locals, not tourists.
Yesterday, Deputy Minister of Interior and Police and director of the Alcoholic Beverages Control Program Jose Pantaleon Maria Arias said that the curfew does not apply to bars, clubs and nightspots that operate within a five-star resort or hotel. Tourism Minister Felix Jimenez has observed that other hotel establishments, similar to the Hotel Hispaniola, have not been authorized to sell liquor after the 12 midnight and 2am holiday and weekend curfew.
The recently signed Economic Partnership Agreement between Cariforum (15 ACP Caribbean countries + Dominican Republic) and the European Union will help regulate the bilateral trade between the DR and Haiti. With the EPA, a free trade will not be necessary between the DR and Haiti, according to Cariforum secretary general Willy Ramirez. Ramirez, who is based in Guyana, is the first Dominican to be appointed secretary general of Carifoum. Ramirez explained in an interview with Listin Diario that while the agreement facilitates the movement of people to Europe, it does not open doors for intraregional migration. For more information on the EPA please click on the following link:
http://dr1.com/trade/articles/426/1/Full-Text-of-the-EPA-Agreement/Page1.html
Beginning Saturday gasoline prices will be RD$2 and RD$3 less for regular and premium gasoline, according to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. Minister Melanio Paredes said the drop would be a relief for the public that has suffered continuous weeks of increasing fuel prices.
Centro Jaquez at 27 de Febrero has a 50% discount on Good Year tires.
Super Pola supermarket is advertising is Friday seafood and fish sales.
In 2005 Dominican flautist Sofia Ines received one of five scholarships offered by the Berklee School of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, through the Michel Camilo Scholarship. The young artist told the press of how she has taken advantage of the opportunities opened up for her and has played in from of First Lady Laura Bush, the Queen of Jordan and has been touring in the US. Ines has also received a special recognition from the US Congress and received a second scholarship to finish the 4-year program at Berklee. The young artist is also proficient in six languages - Spanish, English, Italian, French, Portuguese and Greek.
ESPN and Cultiva Entertainment have signed an agreement making ESPN Deportes the official broadcaster of the Caribbean Series in the United States. The Caribbean Series will be played between 2 February and 7 February in Santiago. ESPN will offer exclusive coverage of the tournament including the inaugural game between the DR and Venezuela on 2 February.
To take advantage of the Dominican talent gold mine, the Pittsburg Pirates have announced that on 22 January they will officially inaugurate the construction of their own Latin America baseball academy. They have been renting a local facility. The new baseball complex will be in El Toro and will serve as the Pirates headquarters for Latin American operations, as well as a training center for players and a housing complex. The DR is a baseball hotbed with 40% of all foreign players in MLB coming from the island.
Baseball fans wouldn't have expected this from the 2008 Round Robin post season tournament. Two teams are tied for first place, Licey and Estrellas, while the Aguilas are only one game behind. And though the Gigantes are in last place they are technically still in the hunt as they are only three games behind with 6 games to go. Last night's Aguilas vs. Gigantes was another memorable game for Aguilas. With the Aguilas down 4-3 in the last inning, with two men on base, Mendy Lopez took one swing and sent the ball deep into the Santiago night for a walk off game winning homerun. The homerun was especially sweet as it came against Dario Veras who had been virtually hit free during the playoffs. Though not as exciting, the Tigres beat up on the Estrellas last night and never aging outfielder Jose Offerman, Emilio Bonifacio and Mathew Tupman were key players in the 13-5 thumping. The win brought the Tigres into a first place tie with the Estrellas and added a bit more intrigue into the remaining games of the post season race.
Standings:
| Team | Win | Lost | Percent | Games Behind |
| Tigres del Licey | 7 | 5 | .584 | -- |
| Estrellas Orientales | 7 | 5 | .584 | -- |
| Aguilas Cibaenas | 6 | 6 | .500 | 1.0 |
| Gigantes del Cibao | 4 | 8 | .333 | 3.0 |
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