PM does not apologize for his decisions in Town Council Infrastructure Projects

Dean Barrow

On Tuesday, the government came under fire from the duly elected P.U.P. mayors of three municipalities – Orange Walk, Dangriga and Punta Gorda. The issue on the table is the PM’s proposed countrywide infrastructure program. Mayors Gilbert Swaso and Anthony Fuentes, from Dangriga and Punta Gorda respectively, accuse the PM of playing politics. They say they both received calls from Barrow informing them that the works will be supervised by the U.D.P. caretakers in their area, and that ninety percent of the persons hired on those projects will have to be U.D.P.  Again, PM Barrow had no apology, and even took the time to throw some solid jabs at the Opposition Area Representatives, claiming that they pocket the monies given to them by government each month for their constituencies.

Dean Barrow, Prime Minister

“When the town councils spend money on street repairs it is tax payers money, it is the same as when government spend tax payers money. When they spend they hire their persons that they wish to hire, so when government spends to me it is perfectly in order that government should provide the list for the recommendees for employment so I will not recede from that at all. No caretaker has anything to do with the money. As I indicated we have entered into a contract directly with Mr. Woods. The mayor of Dangriga selected the streets the only thing he doesn’t get to do is pick the employees and even then I gave him ten percent. Recollect that before the last election that twenty million dollars in housing money that the Venezuelans sent that was spent in one month; no opposition person saw a penny, recollect that the seven thousand dollars a month that the opposition in the house get for the setting up of offices and for votes, you find out how many of them even have an office, by and large they put that money into their pockets. They are the last ones to talk along those line, the point is that Dangriga is getting a half of million dollar worth of works, no U.D.P. town council has gotten more than two hundred thousand dollars. P.G comes next with three hundred and fifty. I would think that they would be grateful that in fact this government is doing for their towns and doing for the  residents of their towns and as I said to you yesterday that the mayor of Dangriga presents himself ecstatic that the government was being so good. I find it a little disappointing that he has now changed his truth at the instance of his good leader.”

Where the works in Orange Walk Town are concerned, PM Barrow says the Town Council has not been involved since there has to be a bidding process through the Ministry of Works because of the scope of the project.