Today, was the long awaited day in the House of Representatives - when the Prime Minister brought the 90.6 million dollar appropriations bill to the House of Representatives. That's the compensation award for the Belize Bank. But - as we told you last night - it would end in a sort of anti-climax - because no vote was taken. The bill was only tabled for a first reading - and the debate and vote will be taken at the next House meeting - which, the PM says, may be held in a month's time.
So while the meter is running on the interest at 17% compounded monthly - the Prime Minister took half an hour to explain why they cannot rush Parliament to make a decision which rests squarely, and solely, on its shoulders.
We pick up his presentation when he discussed the certificate that was received yesterday - which is not for 90.6 million, but for 91.6 million - which is the final bill with legal costs added. Reading from legal advice, The Prime Minister explained how that certificate triggered the Crown Proceedings Act - and what Parliament is now required to do:..
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"A certificate under the crown proceedings act to say this is the amount due, must be procured and that has now been procured. The date stated by the certificate as the relevant date at which the sums totaled in the bill have been calculated, is the date of 15th December, 2017. The certificate also makes clear that interest continues to run at 17% compounded monthly until payment of the amount."
"So that the crown proceedings act which talks about how you can enforce a judgement against the crown must give way to the supreme law of the land. Must view section 25 under which the certificate has been procured and which says once the certificate is procured, the government should pay. You must view that against the backdrop and in deed the back stop of section 114 of the constitution and section 3 of the finance and audit reform act."
"What the crown proceedings act does is to establish based on a judgement of the court that there is a debt, there is a liability, that the crown knows a liability that is payable, but it can't be paid unless parliament decides to vote the money for it to be paid."
"The point of all this is to try to establish for the Belizean people what is the conviction, the absolute complete conviction of this side of the house that parliament's decision. Let's assume there were to be a decision not to vote the monies, cannot properly be argued as a decision that disrespects or tramples on the CCJ. It cannot properly be argued as something that violates the separation of powers. It would be done in furtherance of the separation of powers doctrine. The court's power, the court's remit is limited to passing judgements making orders including orders to pay. Thereafter, how those orders to pay are implemented is a matter for the crown proceedings act and ultimately the constitution of the country and the constitution of the country says only parliament can determine whether or not to vote the monies to pay the judgement debt that the court would have found. So that is - there is one remit for the court - make your determination, on the basis of your determination order that there is this liability against the government and the courts' jurisdiction stops there. Paying the liability can only come out of the consolidated revenue fund and monies to be taken out of the consolidated revenue fund if the judgement is to be satisfied must be voted by parliament."
"I thought it important to try to make the point, because a number of Belizeans, I know are troubled at the notion that perhaps we are contemnors of the CCJ. If parliament votes not to pay, we would be as it were acting in contempt of the CCJ and that's troubling to people, but their doubts really ought to be still because what I have set out makes clear that that is not the case. It is within the respected separate demarcated authority of parliament to make this decision. That being the case, you take away this notion of any fear that you are disrespecting or trampling on the CCJ. All members of the house I believe ought to see their way clear to doing what accords with justice in its largest sense and doing what in my view also accords with what indubitably is the overwhelming sentiment of the people of this country. But I will not preempt the debate and so I close to await with other members and in deed the nation the full engagement of the house at the next meeting when all of us will be called on to examine our consciences as we make this most consequential of decisions."
The PM would only say that the bill will not come back for debate and a final vote until sometime next month.
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