It no longer exists but Sanitation Enterprise Limited, SEL, owes the Social Security Board $319,000 in unpaid deductions. But instead of going to SEL or its former owner Rupert Marin to collect, the SSB is preparing to move on the city council. In a garnishment notice sent on Monday to City Hall, the SSB demanded $319,416.76. It turns out that while it is SEL who really owes SSB because the City Council owes Rupert Marin – under the SSB Act – it can turn to the City Council for payment – even if it is kind of like looking for gold in a gutter. City Councillor in charge of Sanitation Phillip Willoughby says the cash strapped council will take the matter under advisement.

Phillip Willoughby, City Councillor in charge of Sanitation
“I am not in a position to speak directly on the matter as to the Council’s position because as you know the Mayor is out and the Council has not met since the last meeting. I believe we will be meeting next week. These information will be forwarded to I believe the Attorney General’s Ministry and the Solicitor General’s Office and the Office of the Prime Minister to be viewed by them and advise us.

If SEL was being made prior to while it was a living entity, if the council made payments to them, they should have made the statutory deductions required by law, under the constitution and should have paid Social Security its deductions. Why wait until now and go to court and say, okay we had a ruling, an arbitrator ruling, prior to now and well take that to the court and take it to their debtors and say, ‘this is my liability, fine. This is my judgement, fair enough, the council will absorb the cost of my liabilities.’ But in this case I am saying and I will share with my council that whilst he had been paying disposable income to his employees, he should have been paying those deductions and he should have paid Social Security.”

And as we mentioned – the City Council still owes SEL. The dollar amount is $1.7 million which was awarded to SEL on October 25th of 2006. The problem is that the city council has only paid $310,000. And that’s why last week, Marin went to the Supreme Court – asking Justice Minette Hafiz Bertram to garnish - a legal word for what in Creole would be “strong” - the monthly subventions from government. Councillor Willoughby says that if SEL wants to collect its debt – they need to jump at the back of the line.

Phillip Willoughby,
“I am not certain about what positions he has on moving on our subvention and again if that is the case I would beg to differ with them because you know that Belize Waste Control Limited has first judgement for their arbitration and if that was the case then one would say that Belize Waste Control would have first writ to whatever move they are undertaking. So we will see how the chess game unravels come the 28th at the next court hearing but it is all disappointing that we have come to this point.”

The application was adjourned to Thursday May 28th. Again the Mayor is out of the country and we were unable to reach the council’s new financial controller Patrick Tillett for comment. We were also unable to reach Rupert Marin, the owner of what was formerly SEL. Lawrence Ellis who owns the other sanitation company, Belize Maintenance Limited, says that in January of 2008 he bought SEL’s contract and not the company. In that way he didn’t assume any of SEL’s liabilities.

Belize Waste Control similarly has a judgement against the City Council but it has reached an out of court settlement with the Council. BML is also working out a payment arrangement with the council.