Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human Development, Families
"We thought that moving from Women's department, to families support and gender affairs department was a move in the right direction. The name is important and as you know this name change to families support and gender affairs department signals the moto of our ministry equality and inclusion and it signifies that gender is much more than just talking about women. Gender is the relationships between men and women how we run our society and I believe that the name change has been a good one because in terms of providing our social safety net and working to assist our people, Supporting our families but then looking at all the issues of gender affairs it will be very good because we have to look at gender based violence we have to look at promoting women in business we have to look at getting more young men and boys into schools so it is much more inclusive and again I repeat that the motto of our ministry is equality and inclusion."

New Drug Inspector Has Master's In Public Health

In other news, in early October Cabinet approved the repeal of the Food and Drug Regulations, with regards to registration, licensing and inspection, to be replaced with a revised, supposedly modernized legislation.

At the time this was approved, the Ministry of Health and Wellness had no Chief Drug Inspector. Former acting Chief Drug inspectorate Crystal Samouge had resigned from her post at the ministry. After we spoke to the minister today he expressed his confidence in the new legislation being drafted now that they have finally appointed a new Chief Drug Inspector.

Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness
"When we created our drug inspector unit we brought in a chief drug inspectorate. Unfortunately, she has left to the private sector. However, we have someone else who has returned from her degree and I think we are going to be promoting that individual into that post."

Reporter-
"Is this a senior person or a person coming out from university?"

Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness
"No, this is a person who is at the ministry who went to do study leave coming back had been working there for years as a drug inspector. Already a drug inspector has experience and has capacity and now comes back with the necessary degree to ensure that she can fit that capacity. She will act in that capacity so that we cannot make appointments. It is the public service who has to make the appointment. You have seen where our drug inspectorate unit our inspectors have been out doing their work if it was not because of them, we would have not been able to pick up on any of these issues that we have seen. We have won cases we have contraband medication coming in where we have seized, and we work very closely with the customs and police department, and that just proves that work has been going on that unit."

Our sources tell us that Kristen Waight, a drug inspector at the Ministry Of Health And Wellness who recently obtained her masters in public health and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine is the new chief drug inspector.

Belize & Taiwan's Health Partnership

The Minister is just back from Taiwan to discuss healthcare exchange projects between Belize and Taiwan. The Minister spoke more about his trip today:

Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness
"My visit to Taiwan has been, it was a very good visit. I was a part of a ministerial roundtable where we discussed global health issues but of course as you know when we visit these countries it is also where we continue to build bilateral relationships with our partners, and I must say that I was able to bring from there these support for continuous training to our health professionals, especially with digital transformation taking place in the health systems where we will see more of our Belizean professionals getting the opportunity to be trained in Taiwan and at the same time, there will be more exchange programs coming in terms of medical support coming from the country of Taiwan. So these visits are not to visit and go to a forum or conference we also take the opportunity to engage one on one with the ministries there, and I also had the opportunity to meet with the ambassador Pitts who is our voice and face within the country, and there is where we continue the dialogue in terms of what are some of the things that believes would want to see in terms of the benefits that Taiwan has to offer. Taiwan has been a long ally of Belize and a good friend to Belize and they continue to support Belize. As you know when the foreign minister was there recently they made commitments to this country as well, and in health. We will continue to be beneficiaries of the support coming from The country of Taiwan."

UDP Senator on What Next For Senate Special Select

It's been almost a month since Minister of State Christopher Coye and the CabSec, along with their attorney, Eamon Courtenay, walked out of the Senate Special Select Committee hearings. Today we asked UDP Senator, Michael Peyrefitte, how the chambers should react to two fellow senators - Coye and Courtenay - walking out on their social partners colleagues without answering any questions.

He says that's up to the partners to deal with, but if they can walk out, then what's stopping other witnesses, like Erwin Contreras, from doing the same?

Michael Peyrefitte, Senator
"That is a matter for them and that is a matter that you have to ask them, I believe that they are obligated to answer. I believe that when you come to the Senate, you pass a motion that you are a part of saying that Cabinet Ministers can be questioned, you cannot come then come to that very same Senate meeting that you were a part of passing as a law, to have yourself question, then you say well I don't want to be questioned, I don't think it's acceptable. But when you look at the situation with Erwin Contreras, I don't blame him because he has a live matter in court pertaining to the same facts so he should not have been called in the first place, but not only that, having the Minister of State for finance walk out, then Erwin has every right to say then why should I stay and answer questions when the people who pass this motion for people to testify, they themselves don't want to testify. I think if you have nothing to hide, you testify, like I did."

"I think that the government members don't care and they're very nonchalant because they believe that the next general elections are guaranteed for them so if they believe that then they believe they don't have to submit themselves to any process, even one that they themselves voted for."

6 Year Old Shot In Corozal

And, finally tonight, a 6 year old boy was shot on Saturday night in Corozal Town. It happened on Pine Street, where the child was shot to the outer portion of his right hand when the small house he was in came under fire. The child was sitting in front of the door when he was hit. 30 year old Glenn Swaso - a resident of the same home was also shot in the back.

Police today told us what happened:

Both victims were reported in stable condition.