Fonseca comments on B.E.L. sale of shares
Minister of Budget Planning Ralph Fonseca dismissed the Opposition’s criticism as baseless and said the U.D.P. was still licking its wounds after their resounding defeat. He commented on the Gaming Act, which is still in the initial stages, with all aspects and possible ramifications for the Belizean public being examined. He said gambling is already here, with the gaming machines and that such activity must be regulated and generate some tax revenue.
Ralph Fonseca, Minister of Budget Planning
“Initially the legislation that was introduced today is an enabling legislation. It gives the Prime Minister, who is the Minister of Gaming also, the right to put together regulations for any particular circumstance. In the case of the machines that you’re taking about, the machines will first have to be removed from customs. And that is something that our Ministry will be doing which is in charge of customs. We will be signing an S.I. that gets rid of that. Then there has to be a rate that is put on the machines. We still have not agreed on the rate. There are recommendations that have been made from our Ministry and recommendations that have come from other Ministries and we have to sit down in Cabinet and make a decision, but that has not gone to Cabinet. This is gonna be a fairly long conversation before the bills and the S.I.s get into the outside world but we had to get it started at some time.”
Fonseca also commented on the sale of B.E.L. shares which he says will be available to the public. He says the issue of rates coming down is closely tied to the Chalillo Dam project.
Ralph Fonseca
“All of the shares will be put out to the market just like we did last time when we were in government. We’re reopening the over the counter facility at the Central Bank; all Belizeans will get a chance to buy. The international community will get a chance to buy. So at the end of that period when we have the shares on the market then we will leave it up to those that are managing the market to then make arrangements with private sector purchasers. As you know, right now by legislation, no one person can own more than 25 percent of B.E.L. and we don’t have any intentions of changing that.
Having said that I also mentioned today that we have committed ourselves to the Belizean people and I want to do it again, not to go into privatization until we have regulations on the books for the utility companies, in this particular instance for electricity. And we’re well on our way to doing that. There has been a World Bank project that has funded a company that is very well respected for putting together regulatory laws. And we’re expecting that to be completed by the end of April and that we can take that legislation to the House sometime in early May — pass that regulation through, set up the regulatory board and then we are going to the market.
Because very crucial to that regulatory body will be the formula for pricing. Our Prime Minister has insisted that the pricing that goes into the prospectus, that goes into the regulatory legislation allows for a reduction of electricity every year over the next five years.”
