There’s been a whole lot of politics in the news tonight - and mostly it’s been about disputes that politicians are having.
But out next story is a welcome break from that. It’s about a rare show of political unity and bi-partisan cooperation.
It comes after the PUP City Council as forced to cancel the 10th. September Bram due to a lack of funding form the UDP controlled September Celebrations Committee.
The Chairman of the Committee is Patrick Faber who says every municipality’s September money got cut - owing to reduced sponsorship to the sTate.
So, that’s where it stood until the Mayor decided to talk to the Chairman - and they easily found common ground. Here’s how they described it:..
Hon. Patrick Faber - DPM & Chair, Sept. Celebration Committee
"The Belize City Council received a cut I think from 75,000 which they received previous year to 60,000 and subsequent to that the council announced that will not able to do the 10th bram and we feel that is unfortunate, we felt that was unfortunate and the mayor reached out to me and I decided that we ought to sit down indeed and try to work it out. I think the news of the cancelation of the 10th bram didn't go over well with the Belize City residence especially."
Bernard Wagner - Belize City Mayor
"I said we had to see how we could as a council reach out the deputy prime minister give that he is the head of the celebrations committee and he was gracious enough to say listen mayor let's meet and we felt the mere fact that he gave us that room to meet was something huge and yesterday we met at his office and we were able to work out those finer details. It was never a matter of us not wanting to have the bram, it was always a financial matter and being about financial prudence."
Hon. Patrick Faber
"So the mayor and I the deputy mayor Arnold met in a brief meeting yesterday afternoon where we agreed that the council will go forward and that the Government of Belize will try to find the additional fund of 10 thousand dollars to ensure that the bram is bigger and better than ever."
Bernard Wagner
"At the end of the day, the residence of the city benefit and this display of leadership from both ends in mind is the greater taken away out of this situation."
Hon. Patrick Faber
"It is unfortunate that there might have been some indication that it was political but as I've always said to the mayor and the deputy mayor who sits on behalf of the council on the committee - that kind thing for me does not exist, I'm about and the mayor has ensured me, the deputy mayor likewise has said the same. We're not about playing that kind of politics when it comes to the residence of the city. The elections are over, this a time to work together and where it is that we have to politics, save that for down the road and right now let's be about serving the people."
Bernard Wagner
"Belizean people out there, at the end of the day they want to see situation like this, where 2 individuals or 2 organizations with ideas get together and workout deals for them. At the end of the day that is the new way, that is the new thinking of the populous out there, that is the new thinking of the electoral landscape. They want to see leadership get together and workout deals for them."
The total budget for the Bram is about thirty thosuand dollars.
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