Campaign finance reform is one of the hot button issues right now - we’re hearing it almost nightly from the opposition and the social partners.  But, here at 7News we’ve been trying to push our head behind the red and blue curtains to get to the mystery of politicians money for many years now.  

Jules Vasquez has a short history of broken bank dates and introduces the Boots Challenge:

A politician’s bank account, it’s the stuff of a journalist’s dreams - and once upon a time, back in October of 2008, I got to see one:

Anthony Boots Martinez - a UDP minister young in his term came to our studio and laid it all out:

Hon. Anthony "Boots" Martinez - UDP Area Rep
"I have no problem in putting it out. I have no problem for the facts to speak for itself."

And they spoke volumes 

October 2, 2008

Jules Vasquez
"But Mr. Martinez you were elected to office in February and in March you make cash deposits of $23,650 on the 5th. Thirty two days later you make a cash deposit of $30,000, in between you have two other $4,800 cash deposits, all in the month of March $61,850 in cash deposits."

Hon. Anthony “Bootsâ€￾ Martinez
"Look at the pay out, look at the end of March, look at the end of every month, look between the months where you can see consistently that it is a business account. Like for example in the month of March, I will put it on record, I had sold some new brand computers that I had in store at a internet café.  I am going as far as that."

Jules Vasquez,
"But my question is I don’t see you have a store front that you do business at. $61,000 in cash deposits in one month is a lot of money."

Hon. Anthony “Bootsâ€￾ Martinez
"But you don’t see I have a store front but you see I end up in overdraft you see. So in business some months the pay might be great, some months the pay may be small."

Jules Vasquez,
"Specify what is this or are these businesses?"

Hon. Anthony “Bootsâ€￾ Martinez,
"I told you I am an importer, seller of pool tables. I do pool repairs, I rent apartments, I have a internet café."

And while he was widely mocked for this - no other political has lived up to the Boots Martinez challenged, though many have promised, the were written on the wind:

September 6, 2011

Hon. John Briceno - Leader of the Opposition
"We, at that time, my family brought two cable companies, and as I pointed out, Jules, you can check at the bank, you can check how much money we had to borrow to acquire these companies and we are still paying to this day."

Jules Vasquez
"The fact is that we can't check at the bank because your banking records or your family's banking records are private."

Hon. John Briceno
"I could take you to check it. I have absolutely no problem. I have nothing to hide."

8 years later Am still waiting for that bank date, but maybe there’s more hope in getting one with these guys:

January 29, 2020

Jules Vasquez
"You agree with it in principle that finance reform is needed, sir in order to do the right thing, we don't need to wait for a law to tell us, you can go ahead. Would you volunteer and start disclosing your campaign finance sourcing and funds?"

Hon. Kareem Musa - PUP Area Rep
"Absolutely, absolutely."

Jules Vasquez
"But you've already made a commitment, that you would do it."

Hon. Kareem Musa
"Yes I have no problem with that."

Jules Vasquez
"Because I am going to hold you on record because Mr. Briceno tell me long time, he showed me his bank account even."

Hon. Kareem Musa
"Yes I can show you Jules but you won't be very impressed."

Honourable Kareem, I’m very easily impressed, but three weeks later, I’m still waiting, on this guy too:

February 11, 2020

Hon. Michael Finnegan - UDP Minister
"And I could open, so you can see it personally."

Still waiting on this guy too, but that was only a week ago, so there’s still hope.

But until they come through - and they probably won’t all of them will have failed the Boots Martinez test. 

So, to all politicians, Jules is available during regular banking hours.