Kareem Musa Scolds Prime Minister for Trying to “Flee” Economic Disaster

Kareem Musa

First-term area representative for Caribbean Shores, Kareem Musa, has become a noted debater in the House of Representatives. Today’s Budget presentation was no different as he touched on multiple topics while going through what the Budget means for his constituents and Belize generally. The younger Musa went after Prime Minister Dean Barrow as cold, callous, and uncaring about the effects of his Government’s actions and decisions on the Belizean people because he is on the way out of administration. He also said that the pro-poor programs so boasted about by the U.D.P. do not have long-term capability to keep people out of poverty.

Kareem Musa, Area Rep., Caribbean Shores

“The Prime Minister has slammed our economy into a brick wall, and now he has all plans of abandoning the scene of this train wreck, after he captained one of the most fiscally unsustainable spending sprees, that has resulted in increased poverty throughout this country, while at the same time unjustly enriching many of his family and close friends. (Applause) It reminds me, Madam Speaker, [of] when that U.D.P. politician, my predecessor, once said, “It is easy to spend the money, but it is hard to pay it back.” Madam Speaker, this is a fanciful budget – it is all make-believe, or what in Kriol we would call a “force-ripe bukut” – oh, sorry, I meant to say budget. (Applause) It is a blatant cooking of the numbers, for the sole purpose of appeasing bondholders, and trying to convince them that this same set of reckless politicians have now turned over a new leaf, and will mystically transform into a responsible Government.”