Was management of registries part of a secret agreement?

P.M. Barrow says that the agreement signed between B.I.S.L. and former Prime Minister, Said Musa, and the then Attorney General, Francis Fonseca, was done in secret. That documentation sets out an extension of the contract until 2020 for a consideration of one point five million dollars paid into government’s coffers. But Barrow maintains that the agreement was kept in the dark and is illegal so they will not honor it. But is the agreement really secret? News Five has obtained a document which proves that even though the PM says Financial Secretary, Joe Waight, knew nothing about the agreement, it is far from the truth.

Prime Minister Dean Barrow

Dean Barrow

“Nobody was aware of the existence of that “agreement” of twenty-fourth March 2005 that Musa and Francis Fonseca signed. I have checked through directly in one case and through a third party in another with persons who were members of the cabinet on twenty-fourth March 2005 and they were quite clear that that agreement was never brought to the cabinet, was never disclosed to the cabinet. Because as well, no official, neither Ghandi or the financial secretary or anybody else in the public services was ever made aware of that letter, there is nothing acknowledging or indicating that government ever acknowledged receipt of the one point five million dollars…nothing on the files because of course that is the way the then prime minister and the then attorney general wanted it. But a check with the Central Bank suggests and says that one point five million U.S. dollars was received for the account of the government of Belize around this time. Remember the letter said we will pay it in forty-five days. I can’t tell you when exactly that one point five came in…as I understand it…no, the financial secretary had checked for me—he is away—I don’t know whether the acting financial secretary knows the details do the record at the Central Bank, but we are satisfied that in fact one point five million U.S. dollars that was received at the Central bank around this time must have been in connection with the secret letter.”

Mike Rudon

“Alright so there was no document?”

Dean Barrow

“No sir.”

Mike Rudon

“Because I have a document…I did my digging too and I have a document signed by Joseph Waight which acknowledges the one point five million for the extension up until 2012.”

Dean Barrow

“Then Mister Waight would have to explain to me why he was not able to furnish me with that document…maybe it was a memory lapse.”

B.I.S.L. on Tuesday said that government acted arbitrarily and unlawful and can expect another round of expensive litigation. According to the B.I.S.L., the government will become liable for an amount in excess of sixty million U.S. dollars in damages.