Since Friday we have been reporting on the security contracts awarded by the Belize Airports Authority in December.

Well, the Prime Minister - who is also the Minister of Civil Aviation has commented on the coverage

The PM - who is known to hold the line to the very end - made the rare concession that things could have been done differently. Here's the story:

On Tuesday Prime Minister and Minister of Civil Aviation John Briceno was simultaneously critical of and thankful to 7News for exposing the ISECURITY and Four Diamonds security contracts.

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"That's a matter that we have to take a closer look or hard look at it but the irony is that it's almost like an issue of damned if you do damned if you don't. If we had not announced that we already had something in place when they had the unfortunate hijacking of the plane, probably News 7 would be hammering us to say well, you know this was going to happen and you do nothing, now we do something and they find a fault."

Reporter:
"But you have to do it correctly though, PM."

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"So he will find fault in whatever we do and that's okay, that makes him feel great, that's good for him. Now it's the way you spin things, it's the way you explain things. Now that he has brought to our attention some of these things we will have to take a look.""

And under the light of scrutiny and the public exposure that no work was done for four months while these companies were getting paid - the PM - who was copied on our Freedom of Information reply one week ago - says they may have to claw back some monies:

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"If they were paid for a time when they did not perform any work then that will have to be deducted from future payments so - if, I don't know, I need to look into that. So if that was done then we'll have to do that."

But the timing of the contract - with tenders submitted on December 20th, opened on Friday December 21st, and signed and sealed on December 23rd and 24th - with payments starting a week later - if the haste seems unseemly, the PM has an answer for that too:

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"But I think that back then the Belize Airport Authority was trying to get something done quickly but the pressure was upon them because of what has happened just in the recent past.""

Not so recent, they say the security events happened in October and November 2023, 14 months before the contracts were signed - and there was no apparent haste to get the security arrangements in place - in fact the only haste seems to have been to approve the contracts and start making the monthly payments:

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"The tender process is question and it appears these companies are willy nilly. if you have their employees who are supposed to provide the security failing tests and I mean it's for a very sensitive matter as providing security to domestic airports."

"As I said earlier, I think when you look back you have 20/20 vision and I'm sure there are many ways you can find improvements in the whole system and that's something we have to take a look at and learn from."

Learning while hundreds of thousands of dollars in public funds have been disbursed with no security arrangements put in place. But the constellation of political personalities is hard to ignore - along with the pre - election haste to get payments going:

Reporter:
"But corruption?"

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"I don't know how you deem that as corrupt."

Reporter:
"You have this company getting an advance of hundreds of thousands of dollars."

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"Because it was issue of a limited tendering which is done in many instances. On the issue of corruption, if these people were given an advance then it is monies that if it was so, then we will have to deduct it from future payments to ensure that BAA gets value for money."

Reporter:
"But it doesn't appear that these are companies that are well established offering these services, it kinda seems that it's hurry come up and you're giving it to cronies in essence."

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"That's your view."

Reporter:
"And the public's interpretation."

John Briceno, Prime Minister:
"Okay."

Reporter:
"You accept that?"

John Briceno, Prime Minister:

"It's not a matter of accepting but I don't want to be in a back and forth with you over that issue. But as I said, could it have been done better? Quite likely now that we look back, yes. Was I involved in the process? No. Had I known, I would have probably given advice that we need to go a different route.""

Multiple sources, however, tell us that the Prime Minister did have knowledge of the award and the board's decision making process.