Hugo Patt Says the Budget Burdens Belizeans

Hugo Patt

Area Representative for Corozal North, Hugo Patt criticized the 2021/2022 budget as being a bill that creates additional burdens for the Belizean people.  He noted that while the U.D.P. administration was criticized for its borrowing practices, they never cut the salaries of public servants.  And while the records will show that the former administration did enact a one-year increment freeze in 2020, Patt condemned the Briceño administration’s recent hiring practices.  Public Service Minister Henry Charles Usher fired back, saying the U.D.P. rushed to hire people right before the election.

Hugo Patt, Area Representative, Corozal North

“It promises to cut back expenditures by attacking the public officers and teachers’ salaries. Public officers who are expected to fight the war against corona virus and prepare for the inevitable onslaught of natural hazard. As much as our borrowing was criticized, our UDP Administration did not attack the public servants and did not cut salaries as we understood that it is the collective resolve of our people that makes our country stronger.    While it is admirable to see how other governments are able to craft legislations to find more monies to craft legislation to alleviate economic burden of the people. We see this general revenue appropriation bill is crafted to do the opposite. We see an increase in infrastructure expenditures and a decrease made to the programs for social assistance. We see a constant hiring of cronies and political operatives with exorbitant salaries when salaries for our public officers are being slashed by 10 percent. We see a cut in salaries and freezing increments, but yet we see the hiring of contract employees to accommodate cronies with lucrative benefits. This administration keeps on telling the public officers and teachers that there is no money. And on the other hand, the hiring of cronies continues unabated.”

Henry Charles Usher, Area Representative, Fort George

“The member from Corozal North need only look at the black and white to see that this current government have been fiscally disciplined in terms of hiring. It has been difficult to have to explain to your constituents, to have to explain that right now we have to keeping spending down. It has been difficult like the Deputy Prime Minister said. Madam Speaker, in the heights of corona virus pandemic last, the former administration of the U.D.P. increased emoluments. As a matter of fact in June of 2020 it peaked and remained right up there up to October of 2020. And we all know why they were hiring all those people Madam Speaker. Yet again they were trying to buy an election. But Madam Speaker if you look at those numbers, the three months that were the lowest happened to be December 2020, January 2021, and February 2021.”