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In a growing showdown over corporate governance at Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL), the country’s leading communication workers union has amplified its calls for sweeping leadership changes, demanding the immediate exit of three sitting board directors following the recent ouster of chair Markhelm Lizarraga. The escalating standoff, which has drawn backing from the nation’s main opposition party, centers on long-simmering concerns over questionable deal-making and conflicts of interest tied to multiple major acquisition proposals.

Harrison August, General Secretary of the Belize Communication Workers Union (BCWU), framed Lizarraga’s pending removal as just the first step in a broader push to clean up BTL’s leadership. In remarks to reporters, August called for the resignations of directors Moises Cal, Arturo Lizarraga, and Eric Eusey, laying out specific criticisms for each appointee.

Addressing Cal’s tenure, August noted that the director, a well-known diplomat and political figure, carries unresolved public allegations tied to Panama that have lingered online. “For someone holding a critical board seat at BTL to have such dark clouds hanging over his reputation is unacceptable,” August said. “This is not the standard of leadership we demand for one of the country’s most important telecommunications providers. He deserves a vote of no confidence.”

On Arturo Lizarraga, August pointed to what he calls excessive overlapping positions: the director holds seats on both BTL’s board and the Social Security Board (SSB), while also serving as president of the Belize Business Bureau, a post he has held for roughly 20 years. August questioned the transparency of his long tenure in the business group leadership role.

August reserved particular criticism for Eric Eusey, the board’s appointed representative for small BTL shareholders. He accused Eusey of voting in favor of BTL’s proposed acquisition of Smart without any consultation with the small stakeholders he is meant to represent.

The opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) has already thrown its support behind the union’s demands, issuing an official statement backing the immediate removal of Chairman Lizarraga. The party noted it was the first major political group to call for Lizarraga’s departure immediately after the BTL board approved the controversial acquisition.

Union Senator Glenfield Dennison, who brought a formal vote of no confidence against the BTL board, added that the current standoff is not rooted solely in the Smart acquisition proposal. His opposition stretches back to an earlier, even more problematic $90 million plan for BTL to purchase two local cable companies, a deal he opposed from its inception.

Dennison argued that the current board composition that approved the Smart acquisition was originally assembled to push through the cable deal, revealing deeper conflicts of interest at the top of the company. “My no confidence vote isn’t just about the Smart-BTL acquisition,” Dennison explained. “We can’t lose sight of the fact that this same board was put in place to approve a $90 million purchase of two cable companies owned by Mark Lizarraga’s brother and the prime minister’s brother. If people think the Smart deal is problematic, the cable deal was far worse.”

This report is adapted from a transcript of a televised evening newscast, with Creole-language remarks preserved using standard spelling conventions.

Dated August 18, 2026, a new controversy has emerged in Belize’s telecommunications sector after the national Cabinet made a key acquisition decision, drawing sharp pushback from major national labor unions over the confrontational tone of a recent statement from telecom operator Speednet.

Leaders of two of Belize’s most influential labor groups have made clear their position: they do not oppose healthy industry competition, nor do they hold inherent opposition to Speednet as a company. What they do reject, they emphasize, is the unprofessional and hostile framing of Speednet’s official press comment released after Cabinet’s ruling.

Ella Waight, president of the National Trade Union Congress of Belize (NTUCB), laid out the unions’ stance in a public address, noting that organized labor across the country shares the widespread public support for open competition in the telecom space. “Competition drives progress, and every Belizean benefits when we have a functioning, open market. Better services and lower prices are a win for all of us,” Waight stated. “But that does not mean we will accept any kind of bad-faith posturing. The recent press release from Speednet (which operates under the Smart brand) left a sour taste in the mouths of workers across Belize. It came off as vindictive and self-serving, rather than a constructive contribution to the ongoing industry debate.”

The Belize Communication Workers Union (BCWU) has gone a step further, issuing a direct call to the Belizean government to maintain all of its state telecommunications contracts with the country’s national telecom provider, Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL). BCWU General Secretary Harrison August stressed that while unions welcomed Cabinet’s recent vote blocking the disputed acquisition, words are not enough to back that position.

“Cabinet’s rejection of the acquisition was the right call, but actions speak louder than words,” August said. “We are tired of seeing the same Cabinet ministers shift government business away from BTL and channel those contracts over to Smart. It is time for all Belizeans to stand behind our national telecommunications provider. We need to send a clear message to private operators that we will not accept strong-arm tactics: they cannot hold the country hostage to force through a deal that they refuse to provide transparent documentation for, documentation that would let the public make an informed, confident decision.”

For its part, Speednet has defended its position, arguing that because the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has formally designated BTL as a dominant market provider, all government telecom tenders must be put through a formal, open public bidding process to comply with regulations.

This report is a transcribed version of an evening television newscast, with Kriol-language remarks transcribed using a standardized spelling system for accuracy.

On August 18, 2026, a Belizean union senator has stepped up public pressure on the ruling Briceño administration to end months, if not years, of stalled progress on landmark whistleblower protection legislation, arguing that continued delays undermine core commitments to transparent governance and anti-corruption accountability.

Glenfield Dennison, the senator appointed to represent Belize’s trade union movement, is calling for the long-stalled Protective Disclosure Bill to immediately move through the National Assembly’s legislative process, with a target of final debate and advancement within 90 days. Dennison emphasized that the bill is not an isolated policy proposal, but a central pillar of Belizean unions’ broader campaign to embed good governance and accountability across all levels of national government.

In comments delivered to local media and translated from Belizean Kriol using a standard spelling convention, Dennison drew a direct connection between the bill’s delay and recent high-profile controversy over leaked documents related to the Mira Millions scandal. The proposed legislation is designed to shield public and private employees who expose corruption, mismanagement, or unethical activity from professional retaliation, victimization, and other adverse employment actions.

“Right now, this critical piece of legislation that would protect people doing exactly what Belize needs—calling out corruption—has been left languishing in the House of Representatives,” Dennison said. “We have to shine a clear light on why this bill has been left inactive for so long. It’s been effectively dead, so we’re here today to resurrect it. We’ve already seen attempts to target and victimize people who leaked screenshots connected to the Mira Millions scandal—that’s exactly the kind of case this bill was written to protect. We need to move this forward within the next 90 days.”

Dennison also issued a direct public challenge to fellow senator Channona, confirming he is fully prepared to open debate on the legislation in the Senate and asking his colleague to confirm their readiness to move the bill forward. As of the publication of this report, the Briceño administration has not issued an official response to Dennison’s demand for accelerated legislative action on the whistleblower protection bill.

This report is based on a transcribed broadcast from Belizean evening television, with original Kriol language remarks preserved per standard local journalistic practice.

Ahead of the 45th anniversary of the nation’s independence, sitting Union Senator Glenfield Dennison has issued a urgent call for sweeping campaign finance reform, arguing that deep ties between elected officials and their campaign donors have effectively replaced popular sovereignty with rule by wealthy financial backers.

Dennison stressed that campaign finance legislation is not just a procedural tweak for the political system, but a foundational step to restore accountability to public office. Without cutting the financial ties that bind elected representatives to their major donors, he argues, politicians can never truly prioritize the needs and interests of the general public they were elected to serve. While multiple draft bills targeting campaign finance regulation have been introduced in the legislature over recent years, none have moved past the early stages of the legislative process for a full vote or implementation.

In a blunt address delivered during an evening television broadcast, Dennison drew a stark connection between unregulated campaign finance and the erosion of national independence. “There is a very important saying, if we messed up our independence, our colonizers will come back in the form of investors,” he told viewers. “We are forty-five years old as a nation. We have messed up on this thing called independence and the evidence of that is that we are now being governed by people calling themselves investors. I won’t call any names, but the reason those people can run our country is because they control the campaign finance, because when the election is over and you see them go to the Governor General House to swear in, it is not them running the country you know, it is the people who finance their campaign to get them there. Let we be real.”

Dennison’s rebuke also highlights unfulfilled campaign promises from the current administration. Back in 2020, the Briceño administration ran for office on a explicit platform pledge to pass comprehensive campaign finance reform. More than five years later, that promise has yet to be turned into concrete policy.

This report is a transcribed excerpt from a primetime television news broadcast, with Kriol-language phrases transcribed using a standardized spelling system for publication.

As the countdown to the People’s United Party (PUP) Belize City municipal convention ticks down, with just under two weeks remaining before the August 30 vote, campaign operations have shifted to hyper-local, retail politics: candidates and their teams are now working their way through neighborhood doorsteps and dialing through delegate contact lists one conversation at a time. More than 700 registered PUP delegates will cast ballots to select the party’s final municipal slate, and sitting Belize City Councilor Kaya Cattouse says her campaign has been fully mobilized since gaining access to the official delegate list roughly one week ago.

In a press interview alongside her campaign trail activities, Cattouse addressed one of the race’s most prominent controversies: the exclusion of incumbent fellow councilor Evan Thompson from the list of eligible candidates. Cattouse described the decision to bar Thompson from contesting the convention as deeply unfortunate, but framed the outcome as an expected reality of political life. She also clarified that she has prioritized her own campaign efforts over investigating the root causes of Thompson’s rejection.

“Definitely have been on the ground from we got the delegate list about a week ago. We’ve been on the ground trying to reach out to all the delegates and preparing for August thirtieth,” Cattouse told reporters. When asked to share her reaction to Thompson being barred from running, she responded: “Definitely unfortunate. But sometimes that is the nature of politics, and you must move on.” Pressed on whether she knew what led party leadership to reject Thompson’s candidacy, Cattouse added: “I’m not necessarily sure. I haven’t been able to delve so much into his issues. I’ve directly dealing with, with selling myself and selling the team that we have on the ground.”

To date, the PUP has not released a public explanation for why it rejected the sitting councilor’s candidacy application. Party Secretary General Collet Montejo has only confirmed that the final decision was made jointly by the party’s Vetting Committee and National Campaign Committee. This report is adapted from a transcript of an evening television newscast, with all direct quotes retained and transcribed accurately per standard formatting rules.