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Rt., Hon, Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"I for one don't understand the attack on Pastor Senator Rocke. It certainly defeats me how a fellow Christian pastor or fellow Christian pastors can treat with the matter and condemn the senator in such venomous hate-filled terms. But that's a matter for you people of the cloth. With respect to the merits though Senator Rocke made clear that he was supportive of the opposition motion for there to be a hearing with respect to the audit report. He only diverted after he learned that government was proposing that instead of a narrower senate select committee, we get this done by way of a bicameral national assembly joint select committee. What's to be condemned in terms of Pastor Rocke's position? I've heard the suggestion made, well he had already agreed with the church whose senator he is that he would vote for the opposition motion. So he went against his organization. Well when you are putting that under scrutiny, you must put the position of the chamber senator under similar scrutiny you know, because I agreed with the chamber executive yesterday that the matter should be handled, subject to cabinet and the opposition should be handled by a joint select committee and Lizarraga knew of that decision, because Godwin Hulse called me, cabinet knew that I was meeting with the senate and Godwin Hulse called me to ask what was agreed. And when I told him, he informed Lizarraga who checked as I later found out with the president of the chamber, who confirmed that they had agreed with me that the joint select committee would be better. Did he go against his organization? You all must talk about that. And the question of who went against whom aside, if Senator Rocke is to be condemned because he prefers the joint select committee over the narrower senate select committee, you will similarly condemned the chamber of commerce? Because they too obviously prefer the joint select committee over the narrower s senate select committee."

Now, why did he go and suggest that?
We say that because this evening right after the press conference, the Chamber of Commerce sent out a release that sounded pretty much like an attempt to put the Prime Minister in his place.

The Chamber's release says, quote, "In view of…the suggestion that the Business Senator was guilty of misconduct, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry finds it necessary to confirm…that it stands behind the Business Senator, who voted in accordance with our instructions to support the Motion for a Senate Inquiry into the Immigration Audit."

But then, don't they also support the Government's proposal for a joint special select committee? Well, they do! Today's release says, quote, "the Prime Minister suggested that a bi-cameral Joint Special Select Committee be appointed in lieu of the Public Accounts Committee to review the Auditor General's Report. The Chamber agreed that such a committee would be preferred at this point…" end quote.

Ok, but then you can't have it both ways; it's either one or the other, right? Well not for the chamber. The Chamber release says, quote, "The position of the Business Senator going into the Senate Meeting was therefore to support the Motion for a Senate Inquiry. At no point was it represented by the BCCI that any contrary instruction would be given to the Business Senator, nor was any such representation requested from the BCCI by the Prime Minister. It was never considered that the discussion was intended to impact the ongoing Senate debate." End quote.