PM Briceño Promises Full Disclosure on Courtenay Coye Payments

Prime Minister John Briceño promises full disclosure by his administration on the total that has been paid out to Courtenay Coye L.L.P., the law firm of Foreign Minister Eamon Courtenay and Junior Minister of Finance Christopher Coye.  The announcement earlier today follows a letter written by U.D.P. Chairman Mike Peyrefitte on Monday, requesting that the documents that were purportedly presented to Governor General Froyla Tzalam regarding government’s agreement with the law firm, be made public. Under the Freedom of Information Act, the opposition senator is seeking information pertaining to that arrangement since the company’s name has appeared in several cases on behalf of the Briceño administration. This morning, the prime minister told the media that his government has nothing to hide. Of course, he also took a dig at Peyrefitte for ignoring the very same issue when the United Democratic Party was in office.

John Briceño

John Briceño, Prime Minister

“It’s simply a matter that when we have many of these cases that we need to be able to get more experienced attorneys that can help us with these cases.  A lot of the cases that we have, the attorneys that we have in the attorney general’s ministry and it’s no disrespect to any of them, it’s just that we are dealing with some very senior attorneys that are bringing these cases against us.  So we have to make sure that we are getting the best possible defense to be able to, at the end of the day, defend us Belizeans.  We are going to make available the information as to what monies have been paid out, but at the same time, I find it cute that the chairman of the UDP does not have anything to say when the Barrows were collecting a substantial amount of money or that when firms that he is involved with one way or the other have also been involved in getting business from government when he was in government.  So we are going to answer him, we have nothing to hide.”

Reporter

“Sir, Mr. Peyrefitte is also asking to disclose how many ministers, apart from Mr. Courtenay and Mr. Coye have written to the GG for permission that their law firms and businesses be able to be contracted by the government.  Are you able to share this number with us?”

John Briceño

“Well I don’t know about it.  Honestly I don’t know.  I only know about Courtenay and Coye, I don’t know about any other one.”