We also used the opportunity to speak with Castillo about the recent Christmas Cheer programme. As a UDP Area Representative, he got ninety thousand dollars to distribute amongst his constituents. But our reports say, he directed all that business right back into his family owned Supermarket Chain Save U and Bottom Dalla. Castillo is a member of the Castillo family, which is among the largest merchant houses in Belize. He told us that he makes no apologies for giving his family company the government business:
Jules Vasquez
"It puts you in a situation that you funnelled business from the Christmas cheer, or proceeds from the Christmas Cheer, money which you did not handle, but money which came from the Department of the Human Services, from the Christmas Cheer, into those retail outlets."
Hon. Santino Castillo Jr. - Area Rep., Caribbean Shores
"I have no apologies, Jules, I did it last year, and I did it this year. As a matter of fact, I stretched the dollar more due to the fact that it is our stores, I got the items at cost. So, I then, was able to take that $90,000 and stretch it even further, and give those gift certificates to more residents of Caribbean Shores. I mean, other people went to different stores. What is the difference that I go to my store that I own that I get at cost? I will let you know that many of the other area reps came to my store because I gave them an additional discount so that they can stretch their dollar.”
Jules Vasquez
“However, it's a conflict of interest because an enterprise in which you have an ongoing economic interest stood to gain from Government spending which you were in control of."
Hon. Santino Castillo Jr.
"Jules, I'll put it to you this way. I could have gone to Brodies or to Bottom Dollar. At the end of the day, I went to Bottom Dollar, and once again, I have no apologies for it."
We’re still trying to figure out how a cost price discount works on gift certificates which have to be used for items on the shelves with regular shelf prices, but, for right now we’ll leave that one to the mystery of the marketplace.
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