I have always maintained that I was never, ever bribed by Lev Dermen, I was never a part of any discussion to move any money from the United States to Belize, and I never involved myself in any act of corruption or wrongdoing.

This is what I have said repeatedly in all my public releases. I was always careful not to say that I did not receive any cash because I knew that I did receive campaign contributions from Lev Dermen just like many other politicians on both sides of the aisle who knew Lev Dermen. These contributions were not tied to any favor or quid pro quo, hence were not illegal or improper. Jacob Kingston himself has testified in one instance of campaign contributions, and in another instance was unable to say the reason for the monies. At no time in his testimony has Kingston referred to bribery in connection with any monies he claims to have given to me or to have seen given to me. The media and others are ignoring this fact."

The question would then be why did I not say this from the outset?

Well, I was in the middle of a heated battle for the leadership of my Party and if I had disclosed this information I would have been removed from Cabinet and I would have had to withdraw from the race. Patrick Faber would have been declared the winner and that would have left all of my colleagues demoralized and exposed.

My failure to disclose was a mistake and I deeply regret it. I should have opted to make full disclosure to Cabinet and to the public from the outset. This mistake was unnecessary and avoidable since there was nothing wrong or illegal about receiving campaign funds. Today, I apologize to Cabinet and to the general public for this poor judgment, however, I repeat that I have not been the beneficiary of any bribe nor the participant in any corrupt deal and there has been no testimony to the contrary.