BELIZE CITY, Wed., Jan. 13, 2016–This morning, on KREM’s WUB Morning Vibes show, a telethon was held to help pay the $30,000 legal bill of Lucilo Teck, the veteran cañero who went to court last year for a writ of mandamus to force the Sugar Industry Control Board (SICB) to start the sugar crop—delayed amid a standoff in negotiations between cañeros and the Belize Sugar Industries (BSI).
After today’s morning show, Teck told Amandala the good news: that they had raised $12,165 towards his legal expenses.
Amandala readers will recall that Teck was ordered to pay $30,000 to Barrow & Williams law firm, which had provided legal services for the SICB, after he lost his case.
Teck had taken legal action on behalf of the cañeros, asking the court to issue a writ of mandamus to the SICB, to set a date on which the factory would have to open so farmers could start delivering their cane. Teck argued that the stalemate should not have held back the opening of the factory.
Sugar cane deliveries began weeks late, on Monday, January 26, 2015, resulting in millions of dollars in losses to farmers.
Teck’s case was due to be heard on February 23, 2015, after the season had opened, so the court struck out the matter. On December 18, 2015, the court ordered Teck to pay the legal fees of the SICB: $30,000. He has roughly two more weeks to come up with the money.
Teck does not have that kind of money; and not knowing what to do, he turned to the media for help.
Today, Teck was grateful for the public’s support, and he was visibly happier than the last time we saw him, when he visited our office on December 29, 2015 to share his plight.
Teck said that another telethon will be held in Orange Walk Town on CTV3 on January 30.
Teck said that he is very grateful to KREM and the Belizean people who came to his aid today.