PM’s Midterm Address Broaches Cruise Tourism Mess
The Briceño administration has recorded a significant milestone, reaching the halfway point of its five-year term with several achievements, including steady economic growth, as well as a concerted effort towards constitutional reform. Earlier today, the Office of the Prime Minister released a recorded statement during which the head of government touched on a number of issues, among them is cruise tourism. As we reported on Monday, numerous requests have been made by attorneys for Waterloo Investment Holdings, through the Freedom of Information Act, to obtain information from the Government of Belize. This is in respect of the Definitive Agreement that was signed between G.O.B. and Portico Enterprises in October 2020. While the Prime Minister openly discarded the original document during the last house meeting, all of those requests made on behalf of Waterloo have gone unanswered. In the most recent letter sent to the PM on June sixteenth, Senior Counsel Godfrey Smith, wrote, “I am obliged to point out that this adamant refusal by your government’s relevant officials to respond to our client’s requests for information under the act highlights the unfair treatment of our client is being subjected to by the Government of Belize and will be relied upon as a ground in support of our client’s subsidiary companies claim under the UK Bilateral Investment Treaty of 1982”. We begin our newscast tonight with an excerpt from the Prime Minister’s Midterm address in which he speaks briefly on the developments in cruise tourism development.
Prime Minister John Briceño
Prime Minister John Briceño
“In cruise tourism, the recent controversy serves to highlight the unique demand for the Belize product. One cruise port is under construction and developers for two additional ports seek approval. Surely, these hundreds of millions being talked about would not be proposed if Belize did not offer a world class product whose natural luster we must safeguard for this and future generations. In this regard, we will not be distracted, we will not be intimidated, and we will not be bullied. My administration will do what is in the best interest of our nation and the Belizean people.”
There is a call from senators representing civil society, as well as from the opposition, for a commission of inquiry to be held in respect of Portico’s Definitive Agreement. The Briceño administration is yet to comment on that request.
