But before he walked away, Briceno spoke about his decision to combine the Home Affairs and National Defense Ministries and put Michel Chebat at the helm.
Although the interim minister, Julius Espat, expressed that he would have taken the role permanently, he told us he was waning from his time spent in limbo. And today the PM explained that Espat preferred to remain at MIDH.
Here's how the PM explained his decision:
John Briceno, Prime Minister
"I think that is an issue that I as prime minister just has to be able to find the best fit with what we have. It's unfortunate that the report from the auditor general is not ready and I understand it's a lot of work that they have and I've not really spoken to her. We're allowing her to be able to go through the entire process and that will not go until some time next year. I said three months and the three months was up and ministers were getting a bit, what's the right word, they were not too comfortable not knowing whether they were going to be there or not and Minister Espat at the end of the day decided he wanted to just stay with infrastructure development, a ministry which he has been doing a good job so I had no hesitation when he said he would rather stay where he is. I then felt that the next person I think can do a good job was Minister Chebat simply because one I think his background as an attorney can help him to be able to understand the laws when it comes to policing and also I believe that he is a no nonsense and a person with a strong personality to be able to make changes in the police department and find ways how we can combine the BDF and the police to be able to provide the necessary service to keep Belizeans safe."
"Minister Espat at the end of the day preferred to stay where he was. When I first asked him to handle the ministry for the time being, he did it reluctantly but as he said, prime minister, I'm a team player, I'm going to do it as best as I possibly can."
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