7 News Belize

Saldivar Speaks Boldly
posted (February 18, 2020)

So, while he wouldn’t answer our questions, as we said, Saldivar did speak at length on the Morning Show -  in a no holds barred interview that covered the entire scandal ending in his double resignation as party leader and cabinet minister. Â 

The politician who has gone from a powerful minister to an area representative without portfolio clearly is not throwing in the towel. 

Saldivar spoke like a man eager to get his story out - and he made clear that he’s in the mix of whatever the future holds for the UDP. 

John Saldivar - Area Representative, Belmopan
"At this point the party is trying to find its way forward and I will be a part of whatever solution the Party is able to find, and I think we can leave it at that, for now."

Reporter
"The Place where your party is now the dilemma, the controversy, the bad place, how much of it are you to blame?"

John Saldivar
"Well to the extent that what started out as an innocent contribution towards my political campaign has now ballooned into the scandal that it has turned out to be, quite unnecessarily. To that extent, I have contributed to it but that is why I’m here today to clear the air to tell my story not just to you two but to the nation as I tried to do in the release that I put out sometime last week. In the days leading up to the convention, the days and weeks leading up to the convention there was a narrative that was being told to the Belizean people and that narrative was that this fellow Kingston was going to testify that John Saldivar was involved in bribery and corruption that is what all the media was carrying. Well, he has testimony has come and gone and he has not implicated me in any bribery or corruption and I think that that is a story that the media needs to highlight the same way they highlighted the allegations they need to now highlight that no such evidence has come out in trial so that’s the first point that I want to make, no bribery and corruption and I think that is what was most scary about the whole thing."

Reporter
"These men have been consistently accused of whatever they’ve been accused of."

John Saldivar
"So, let’s clarify that. Because first of all the contributions as you have now seen from the testimony was six years ago."

Reporter
"So those had not continued?"

John Saldivar
"Of course not. Of course not."

Reporter
"Secondly, how much did you receive?"

John Saldivar
"I can’t recall."

Reporter
"Come on, you don’t forget things like that."

John Saldivar
"No man let me tell you this. First of all, this issue about 25 thousand dollars a month. No man, the man gave different amounts, varying amounts at varying times. And it’s not that I was keeping those. And what does that matter? The man was generous. There are many other generous businesspeople around who give substantial amounts to different campaigns, including mine and we are not under any obligation to disclose amounts or who. I will not be held to a standard that nobody else is being held to."

Reporter
"But to set the example."

John Saldivar
"I will not be held to a standard that nobody else is being held to. So, we talk about it together and we change it together, but you don’t single me out to hold to a standard that nobody else is being held to."

Reporter
"You got caught."

John Saldivar
"No, not got caught. Because got caught with what? You see Ernesto, this is the problem that we’re perpetuating. We’re perpetuating that I did something wrong, got caught with what?"

One of the soundbites from this morning saw Saldivar claim that Facebook doesn't win elections and yet he took to the platform this evening, to grandly sum up his Love FM appearance. The Belmopan area rep says the interview served to vindicate his name and confirm his original position.

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