Protest march focuses on G.O.B. financial management
The demonstration held on Saturday may not have provided the spark to immediately oust the present government, but the determined crowd that marched through the streets of Belize City was sufficiently large to remind the Musa administration that people are watching… and reacting. The protest, organised by the Association of Concerned Belizeans, was prompted by the Social Security Board’s decision to lend ten million dollars to a company called Sunshine to purchase shares in B.T.L. from government. Although Sunshine was supposed to act as a trustee for B.T.L. workers who would eventually buy the shares, the worker’s union wanted no part of Sunshine and the most immediate beneficiary of the purchase was the cash-strapped government of Belize. At a rally held following the march, a number of labour leaders spoke out loudly against the deal… and the government that promoted it.
Anthony Fuentes, Pres., Belize Natl. Teacher’s Union
“This is the beginning of the struggle. We will not give up, but it has to be each and every one of us who will join in this protest. It cannot only be the union because it is not only the union members that will be affected by this ten million dollars.”
Dylan Reneau, Pres., Public Service Union
“The reality of the situation is that our Prime Minister is very disrespectful. We signed an agreement that he has not honoured and you know why that has happened, because we have let loose the pressure. I guess we need to bring Grandmaster on the stage. The man needs pressure!”
Paul Perriott, Pres., Belize Communication Workers Union
“They tek we fi cunu-munu. They tek we fi some fools and they act like we can’t control fi we own destiny. They have to put a set of white people fi control a Sunshine that they seh dah fi we, like we can’t control it weself. Again, dah another slap weh the present administration continue do to the Belizean people. We as the people noh have no voice. We talk about democracy; we no have no voice inna this country. And if we noh wake up people, we noh wake up and actually get together and fight against the oppression weh we the face so far, we noh wah get no way. We just going up again like back inna the days of slavery.”
Although the union, led by Perriott, is not happy with the Sunshine situation, it has been unable to arrange any financing of its own to buy the twenty percent stake in B.T.L. being offered by government. Apart from using the shares as collateral, the B.T.L. workers–who are among the nation’s highest paid–have shown no inclination to put up any of their own cash or that of their pension fund.
