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We spoke to Panton at a donation handover from the Indian Community.  The Belize Indian Community has decided to set aside 80,000 dollars in food packages to donate needy Belize City residents who aren't getting formal aid from the Government. They have decided to work with the Albert Division's Area Representative, the PUP Standard Bearer for the Albert Division, and the Belize City Council.

The premise is that the area representative, her political rival, and the Mayor are able to identify the city residents who would benefit the most from this donation.

This morning, the Indian Community's two past presidents, Dinesh Bojwani and Preeti Wadhwani, and the Arun Hotchandani, the Honorary Consul General of India, officially handed over the donations. 

7News was there, and we asked the donors to explain the gesture of goodwill in their own words. Here's what they told us:

Dinesh Bhojwani - Representative, Belize Indian Community
"We all got together about 2 weeks ago to try to figure out what we can do for a lot of the families in the City that are struggling because they either lost their jobs, or they're struggling because maybe 1 parent or 1 person has lost their jobs. So, we got together and said, let's wait and see what exactly happens to all the different programs, and where people are gonna fall through the cracks. There are several people, for example, even though you hear about frontline workers, they are having to use their funds they're getting from their employment, to pay babysitters. So, they might not have the wherewithal to pay for food. And the ones who lost their jobs, who might not be a part of any of the government programs also don't have the wherewithal to do this. What we decided to do,  rather than going out and get to these people because we might not understand the logistics, is to create the vouchers, and go into the various constituencies, and look for the institutions that have the wherewithal to do that. The entire project is currently at $80,0000. Each package is about $40. We have it in front of us right now. It has staples, rice, beans, sugar, flour. There's even toilet paper because that's an issue. We wish we could give more in the package, but one of the things we were trying to do is give to as many people as possible. So, we currently have about 2,000 packages that we'll be delivering."

Hon. Tracy Taegar Panton - Area Rep., Albert Division.
"We haven't chosen the beneficiaries of this program yet. We were obviously approached today by the Indian Community. They are a big part of my constituency. As you know, most of the members of the Indian Community live in the Albert constituency and have their businesses. We just gave out, this week a round of provisions to what we call the most vulnerable, our shut-ins, our elderly, who can't make it to pick up a pantry bag or to have access to the food. In another 2 weeks, we will be sharing these vouchers primarily to the most vulnerable."

Bernard Wagner - Mayor, Belize City Council
"I want to certainly thank the Indian community. This donation here will go a long way. I know that there have been many programs throughout the city, a lot of agencies doing their part. This is just another entity doing their part as well. And I'm certain the residents of the City will appreciate it. There are those elderly people who may not have the capacity to really go and stand up in a line for some time. And so, we will, from our City, we have the resources. We have the trucks; we have the staff who will be able to essentially access the package for those individuals and really take it to those elderly people, and the neediest of the needy."

Hon. Tracy Taegar Panton
"We have been very encouraged by the support we have gotten from the business community in general. We have had two rounds of distributions, which we have conducted through our Albert initiatives, and that has all been supported by the business community."

According to the donors, the vouchers for each needy recipient afford them a 40-dollar bag of groceries. Area Rep., Tracy Panton, PUP Standard Bearer  Paul Thompson, and Mayor Bernard Wagner and their teams will be responsible for the delivery of the identified recipients of these packages.