We also asked him for his perspective on last week Friday's Senate Meeting, which now ensures that there will be a Senate Committee that will investigate the Special Audit Reports on the Immigration Department.
He voted against Church Senator Ashley Rocke's Government friendly motion which allows 2 UDP senators on this Committee. Critics say that the Government should not have this much influence on the tribunal since, it is this government administration which will be investigated for corruption.
Today, Lizarraga told us that the business community is currently in consultations about the aspects of the Ashley Rocke motion which they do not agree with:
Hon. Mark Lizarraga - Business Senator
"The chamber has decided to poll its members. As a matter of fact as we speak the chamber is in the process of getting survey feedback from its membership as to what our positions will be on that. Yes the committee was formed and yes the committee was formed with 6 members and we have supported consistently a committee with 5 members. that is not to say that the prime minister cannot say 'I'm only appointing 1 instead of 2', that is still a possibility but at this time the business community has not arrived at a final decision as to what his actions are going forward. As far as the calling of the committee to meet, appoint a chair and to finalize its terms etc. I have not been informed as yet from the national assembly that such a meeting has been called."
Daniel Ortiz, 7News
"Sir for a committee like this to be effective just like a good prosecution in the criminal courts or a good interview for that say, the persons who are conducting these things are expected to be knowledgeable, expected to be conversant with the information. It's a lot of information and the persons who are named will vigorously defend their reputations and their innocence. If you are called to serve on this committee, will you be prepared to ask the difficult questions that the Belizeans want asked?"
Hon. Mark Lizarraga - Business Senator
"I have no doubt that if I'm on that committee we're going to ask all the questions that need to be asked, but you need to keep in mind that this is not a judicial committee. The purpose of this committee is not to send anybody to jail, that is of the police and the DPP. There's nothing that stops them from starting this process of investigation that they need to start, they should have started already in my view. What this committee is designed to do it to really look at the structural deficiencies and the weaknesses and processes that took place in the immigration and nationality department. Were there rules in place? Were there policies in place that were clear? Why these rules and policies not followed and what were the gaps that need to be tightened? That is the purpose of this committee."
Daniel Ortiz, 7News
"Sir but in trying to find that out, will the committee members be able to question those persons named and find out once and for all to put beyond reasonable doubt if there was acts of corruption in there?"
Hon. Mark Lizarraga - Business Senator
"There's a matter that concerns us right now the way the rules read. the rules read today that we will need the permission of the president of the senate to call any witness and that concerns us because in our motion that we were proposing and the amendments that we proposed, we said that any member of the committee should have the ability to call any witness that he or she thought should be questioned. So there are some things that we need to clarify and the business community is still exercising all its options and looking at all this."
A date has not yet been set for selection process of the Senate Committee Members, and the naming of a chair.
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