Musa: P.U.P. has taken Belize to the next level
Over the weekend the campaigns of both the People’s United Party and United Democratic Party peaked as each held televised rallies in Belize City. The last two days before the elections are almost anticlimactic as the rival political organisations seek to fine tune the election day machinery that will ultimately decide the outcome of Wednesday’s voting. Today I caught up with the two party leaders and asked them to put their efforts in perspective.
Prime Minister Said Musa, Party Leader, P.U.P.
“They’ve heard many messages, many advertisement, they’ve been bombarded with all sorts of things, all sorts of accusations, charges, slander, lies. But deep down, I believe the people have the good sense to realize they have to sift the wheat from the chaff. When they do that, they will realise I believe that this government, this People’s United Party government has worked very hard these past four and a half years almost five years. We haven’t been a perfect government, but we can’t possibly be cause we are humans. But we are the best government for Belize.”
“We made some very ambitious and serious goals and objectives we set for ourselves; we have kept those. There has been a housing boom that has taken place like never before. In education we have seen a tremendous advancement in access and quality in education. Never before have so many young Belizeans been given the opportunity to study at the university level at home and abroad. When you consider that twenty million dollars was provided just for student loans, and most of these loans were granted on terms that the student does not have to pay back until he or she returns home and starts working, making an income.
In the health sector we have seen the improvements, we have seen the rolling out, the beginning of the national health insurance, which has been very dear to me heart, because I think health for all has to be an important ingredient in the fight against poverty, to give people access to good health care. In the rural communities, so many villages now have water systems, over sixty-five. Just about the entire country is electrified. These things seem like miracles before, but they have happened.
But I will be the first to admit that although much has been accomplished, we have a lot yet to do. And the new manifesto that we presented to the people sets out very clear targets again, very precise objectives, like thirty thousand house lots for those who have not yet received their plot of land, like reducing income tax, exempting income tax from all those who will earn twenty-five thousand dollars or less, and also, reducing other taxes. We believe we can accomplish these things, because the key to this whole thing is maintaining confidence, the confidence of the people, the confidence of the investor, and a government that is competent to carry out the work in these very difficult times.”
