Belize City mayoral candidates to appear on Open Your Eyes

And turning to Belize City, we know that Mayor Zenaida Moya is not talking, so on the eve of Wednesday’s municipal elections we are left with a lot of questions and no answers. We know, for example that the Council is indebted to the tune of some nine million dollars, including one point nine million owed to B.M.L. for sanitation contracts. The list also includes three point six million to Alliance Bank, one hundred and eighty-five thousand to Atlantic Bank and five hundred and seventy-one thousand to the Bank of Nova Scotia. We also know about thousands of dollars in contracts issued to the SM Construction Company, owned by the mayor’s brother. What we do not know is the current status of the three million dollar credit facility that the council secured with the Bank of Nova Scotia in October of 2006 for which City Hall put up the Commercial Center as collateral. At that time, the announcement carried with it plenty hype since the Mayor was backed up by Nestor Vasquez and former P.M. Manuel Esquivel to give an air of credibility to the deal. The Mayor said the Council would pay fifteen percent interest and that the facility would only be used if it was needed. With so much allegations of financial indiscipline at City Hall and the absence of audited statement, voters are left to wonder whether the three million dollar facility was ever drawn down and if it was, how did the council use that money? The mayor has been deafening silent in the past few days but she is scheduled to be on our breakfast show tomorrow morning along with her contender, Cecil ‘Chubby’ Reneau. Also appearing on the show will be Chief Elections Officer Ruth Meighan, who will talk about the election day machinery as voters go to the polls to cast their ballots.