Here now are the comments from government's lawyer, the Attorney General, Michael Peyrefitte, reacting to the judgment which issued a withering rebuke to his government :
Hon. Michael Peyrefitte- Attorney General
"I am not going to be emotional like the CCJ, they made a decision, they are the final appellate court and we are bound by that decision. They said that even though they admitted that in the judgement, when the PUP entered into the contract with Michael Ashcroft in 1993 and when the PUP extended the contract from 2005 to 2020, that it was basically illegal, that they believed that nevertheless there was a breach of contract by the government. That is their position, we disagree with it but they are the final court of appeal and we have to accept that. Now we go to the Supreme Court for an assessment of damages and at that stage the Supreme Court will determine how much damages they believe that the Government should be and if a party is not satisfied with that assessment at the Supreme Court then you go through the appellate process all over again."
Daniel Ortiz- Reporter
"We are talking about tens of millions of dollars that this could turn out to be, obviously Belize can't afford that right now. What are your thoughts on us ever satisfying this decision?"
Hon. Michael Peyrefitte
"Well, I mean, we are bound by the decision and whatever assessment the Supreme Court comes with down the road, or maybe even then CCJ themselves come with down the road, the government of Belize will have to find the money to pay the damages. And then after that whichever parliament is responsible at that time will have to decide either to vote for the money or not vote for the money."
We'll have a little bit more both attorneys in tomorrow's newscast, discussing the details and implications of the judgment.
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