7 News Belize

BRICENO ON CORRUPTION...
posted (January 17, 2020)
And, while we caught Faber as he was leaving the house, we couldn't catch Saldivar. As is his now his trademark, he slipped out early, during a break - and left the house before any media was aware of it.

But, his name was much in the house today, because he was the most visible ministerial associate of both Danny Mason and Lev Dermen.

The opposition leader said that at some point, consequences have to be issued against wheeling and dealing ministers:...

Hon. John Briceno, Leader of the Opposition
"What is really important and what Belizeans are really interested is that they want to know who are the 2 unnamed ministers that are accused of bribery that belongs to the UDP cabinet. I am happy to hear that he announced today that Herman Longsworth who is the consul general in New York, fat salary, living quite well in New York that he is going to call him in so that Mr. Longsworth can explain."

"With respect to the recent activities, is the prime minister acting enough to say that he will suspend or fire someone from the cabinet especially when we look at his record in dealing with scandals in his government? Should there be a criminal investigation in Belize for all these corrupt acts, bribery and money laundering? Should the FIU be ask to open a file and to investigate? Belizeans are well aware that we have ministers and government officials who are not only associating openly with murders and criminals like Danny Mason and Lev Dermen, but they are directly involved in these scandalous and corrupt behavior with utter impunity, because they suffer no risk of criminal prosecutions or sanctions in Belize under the leadership of this hypocritical UDP government. No one is being held accountable for anything. So now the chickens are coming home to roost. The Belizean people are now demanding more than just words, they want more than just promises, they want action."

Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Dean Barrow
"In terms of the leader of the opposition suggesting that I have not acted, he himself in coming to his conclusions said with respect to Penner, that expect for his firing from cabinet, well what is that if not the ultimate sanction that I as a prime minister could have imposed. I can't prosecute anybody, I am not the police and don't talk about my personal responsibility. Of course as the head of the government I accept that I have to deal with what happens and when members of my cabinet, my government engage on wrongdoing I have to hands up and say what it is is what it is, I will deal with it, but do not try to suggest, if that's what you were doing, that I can ever be accused of any kind of personal corruption unlike you. There has been or there have been instances of corruption under the UDP. Nobody with the best will in the world there is no way I can stop people from acting in the way they will, but as I said whenever there is any actionable evidence, I moved against. I say to you and to all members of this house and to the nation anybody, any minister that is found in deed to have been complicit in any corrupt act and to have received money for purposes of a bribe, will be fired by your humble servant. I did make the point that if there are loose ends that need to be tied up close to the time when in my own mind I have determine that I should go, I will stay as long as it takes to sort those out, because I, unlike you, feel that I have a duty to the Belizean people to deal with any wrongdoing that has taken place under my watch."

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