And now to some of the action that actually happened on the House Floor. The Leader of the opposition challenged the Prime Minister on a position taken by the Integrity Commission. The Commission sent out a request asking elected representatives to furnish their accounts going back five years. But then they reversed their decision to ask for only one preceding year. It's the Commission's decision, but the Opposition blamed it on the government - and said it's a clear attempt to only go halfway on transparency. The media grilled the PM on it:...
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"The commission reconsidered the matter, I believe sought legal advice and concluded that in deed they could not go back, they could not have jurisdiction over a time when they were not in office, they were not commissioners and that's all that it is. And I pointed out to Mr. Briceno while initially the first decision was I believe a majority decision, when they reconsidered and they reversed that decision, it was unanimous in terms of all the members present and voting. Mrs. Balderamos-Mahler as I understand it was not at that meeting, but the other PUP appointed commission member - the other commission members chosen by the leader of the opposition, Mrs. Claudette Grinage, she voted for the new position, because obviously the people genuinely have become convinced that under law they are unable to require us to go back the 5 years that they have first sighted."
Hon. John Briceno, Leader of the Opposition
"And even if that was the case that the commission does not have the authority, I think that the Prime Minister have a moral responsibility because of the promise that he made the Belizean people that they are going to be a corrupt-free government to have all of his ministers to put in their reports from 2008 and show the monies that they start off and what is it that they have explain how is it that they have manage to acquire so much wealth. That is my point Madam Speaker."
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