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He's also been politically tainted in the past for being the consummate PUP insider who benefited from the famous bloated contracts between 1989 – and 1993 – the most famous of which is for the Iguana Creek Bridge – which collapsed, the remnants of the structure serving now only as a billboard. It's relevant because the bridge is at the boundary of Cayo Central - where Espat wants to be Area Representative. And So we asked him about it, and Espat, who usually takes all questions with panache wasn't too happy about that one:…

Jules Vasquez
"One of the monuments to your incompetence as a Civil Engineer or as a contractor is right at the cross section of three divisions, the Iguana Creek bridge; your bridge that fell into the river."

Luke Espat
"My bridge or the bridge that the Ministry of Works built that we told them would have had a disaster. Let's not go back there Jules. Let's not go back, we dealt with that years ago. I am not going to continue to encourage you in that line of questioning because have told you."

Jules Vasquez
"Yes but it will come up in Cayo Central."

Luke Espat
"All you have to do is go back and find the records and that was answered then. Ministry of Works designed it, they were told and we did what we were instructed as the contractors at the time. End of story; that conversation is done."

Jules Vasquez
"It will come up in the elections, inevitably."

Luke Espat
"But you see politics is local. Let my voters worry about that."

Jules Vasquez
"What do you say is Mr. Montero's greatest vulnerability?"

Luke Espat
"That I will leave for me, why should I advise him on your network. I intend to beat him, I will not tell the enemy where and how I will beat them."

Jules Vasquez
"The leader of the opposition has said and mentioned it twice, already, that five people are interested. You told me that no one is interested. Who's right and who's wrong?"

Luke Espat
"I am not here to answer you right or wrong. As I said to you, my leader has made a statement that was asked of him regarding the process. 'Was Luke Espat endorsed as the candidate for Cayo Central?' My leader answered you. ' Luke Espat was not endorsed; there is a rigid process that this party goes through.' Just like Cordel Hyde has to go through, as you noticed, let me help you. He went on to say he had had talks to ask Mr. Hyde to come back in the party or want Mr. Hyde is asking to come back to the party, so there is a process, he has to go through a process and anybody that wants and I am sure that the process Mr. Hyde has to go through will be three times as vigorous as mine, because he betrayed the party."

Jules Vasquez
"You told me yesterday, nobody want run in Central."

Luke Espat
"Well I have not seen anybody come forth yet."

Jules Vasquez
"Okay so Mr. Fonseca was mis-speaking."

Luke Espat
"I wouldn't know, maybe five people or ten might have asked Mr. Fonseca. As you said this morning, Mr. Julius said he was sent as a prophet to go find people. Didn't he find Mr. Andrews from 2009 to 2012?"

Jules Vasquez
"Right here in this same sixty seconds you have thrown under the bus Cordel Hyde and made aspersions against Mr. Andrews."

Luke Espat
"No, I never made aspersions."

Jules Vasquez
"You said Cordel Hyde betrayed. His son was very ill."

Luke Espat
"I said that in reference. His son was ill? My mother died or my cousin died or my sister is dead and that doesn't make me not a PUP. I am a PUP now, tomorrow, yesterday and day after tomorrow."

Jules Vasquez
"But how can you speak about your PUP brethren so discouragingly."

Luke Espat
"Because we lost an election and the people are suffering, as a result, of two seats in Belize City. One, that was Albert and one that was Lake I. Question, blank, zero, don't care how you check or add that. Now, Mr. Cordel Hyde served this great party and if Mr. Cordel Hyde goes through the rigorous process and say mea culpa, who am I to judge him? I am not going to judge Mr. Hyde."

Jules Vasquez
"You just did."

Luke Espat
"No, I said what he did. It's just like the prodigal son issue. You come home and you apologize and you say mea culpa and you start back. There is no preferential treatment here, so let's not have no argument there. I am not here to judge Mr. Hyde. Mr. Hyde must be his own judge."

Jules Vasquez
"For some reason, historically in the PUP, people have not taken it seriously. Why is this?"

Luke Espat
"The biggest mistake I made is not to have proceeded to take up that post of national campaign manager. It was the biggest disaster I did politically. Do you know why?"

Jules Vasquez
".With Eamon Courtenay"

Luke Espat
"Exactly, I compromised when Mr. Eamon sat down with me and the party leader and said, 'just leave it alone' let's continue to work. We will create a post and they did."

Jules Vasquez
"Director of Operations, I believe."

Luke Espat
"Strategic Director."

Jules Vasquez
"It was a blank post and you were rinsed of it, by Francis Fonseca."

Luke Espat
"Exactly, biggest mistake I made. That was the one mistake."

Jules Vasquez
"You should have challenged him."

Luke Espat
"I should have and then we would have had a change from then, because we would have won the government, you know."

Jules Vasquez
"How many Espats is too many Espats? We have Luke Espat, we have Mike Espat as Deputy Leader, Julius Espat, your first cousin as a Deputy Leader as well."

Luke Espat
"We Espats just love the People's United Party, end of story, you have one that have abandoned us,"

Jules Vasquez
"Two. But then."

Luke Espat
"I don't know about the other one. Maybe you can tell me. I would love to be able to report that to my party that Jules Vasquez told me one more Espat has left the tent."

Jules Vasquez
"Three out of thirty one would be too much; that would be nine point eight percent of the standard bearers of the PUP would be of the same family. Wouldn't that be unseemly?"

Luke Espat
"Let the people of Cayo Central decide that, the people of Cayo South and let the people of Toledo East decide that. Not you."

Jules Vasquez
"People in Cayo Central would see you as a rich man and being the history and tradition the PUP, particularly the old guard which you represent, they might say 'money time'"

Luke Espat
"Well you see, I will answer that for you quite easily. It's not business as usual. We are here to win elections. We are not here to waste money."

Jules Vasquez
"It's not that people want money to build a house, people need money to eat, there is a lot of desperation out there."

Luke Espat
"Exactly."

Jules Vasquez
"And they will come to you because you're seen as a rich man."

Luke Espat
"Well that is easy to be seen, then I send them to Montero where they should be. I think they should be at Montero's house everyday, lined up. I am going to encourage my constituent members to create a line."

Jules Vasquez
"And they will say the line we have is in front of you Mr. Luke, bring the money."

Luke Espat
"That is fine. You see I expect you to say something like that but I am telling you what we are going to do."

Espat says he doesn't know the date of the convention – but he will be on the ground working from now going forward.