The clock is ticking toward a possible shutdown of Belize’s bus system. The Belize Bus Association has given the government notice that its members will discontinue service on Monday, August twenty-fourth, if no agreement is reached over the cost of diesel. Association President Philip Jones says operators kept buses running after the subsidy expired on August fourth, even as fuel, tires, parts and other expenses continued climbing. But he says the industry can no longer carry that burden. The association is offering to meet with the government immediately, but it wants the subsidy restored retroactively. Without a last-minute solution, Monday morning could begin with thousands of commuters searching for another way to travel.
Minister Zabaneh Says BBA Broke His Expectations
The Transport Minister says the Belize Bus Association’s shutdown threat caught him by surprise. Doctor Louis Zabaneh says he spoke with BBA President Philip Jones on Wednesday and believed the association would give Cabinet time to consider its request. Instead, bus operators have announced plans to suspend service on Monday. Zabaneh is now pushing back against that decision. Here is how he explains it.
Louis Zabaneh
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport
“I think the threat is out of place at this time. The request was made, initially to me, about a month ago. I informed the president by telephone that it would be more appropriate to address the letter to the minister of finance and that certainly I would be in communication with the prime minister as minister of finance. We discussed the matter, it was sent to the prime minister, and at this last Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting we discussed the matter and the prime minister asked for the ministry to do an analysis and present a Cabinet a paper at the next Cabinet meeting, not this Tuesday, btu the following Tuesday. I shared that yesterday with president Jones and in that conversation I was left with the impression that we had an understanding that we would await the deliberation of the Cabinet in a similar way we had done before and to my surprise this letter came out today.”
Why Won’t Government Restore Bus Subsidy?
Commuters in northern Belize could find themselves caught in the middle of a showdown between the government and bus operators. Transport Minister Doctor Louis Zabaneh says he cannot guarantee that buses will run on Monday, arguing that the Belize Bus Association now controls what happens next. But with the association repeatedly calling for the return of the fuel subsidy, here’s what we’re asking: why has the ministry refused to give operators the relief they say they need?
Louis Zabaneh
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport
“Because it is not the decision of the Ministry of Transport. It is not under my portfolio to make such determination. That is a fiscal matter. They are fully aware of that, because we have been down this road several times with them and so it was more appropriate for them to address that letter to the prime minister, the minister of finance, copied to me and I made a commitment to them which I fulfilled by having a discussion and brining up at the Cabinet.”
Paul Lopez
“What assurances can you give commuters that there won’t be that sort of shut down on Monday that we saw a couple months back.”
Dr. Louis Zabaneh
“That is not in our power. That is in the power of those members of the BBA who are not members of the National Bus Company. Who comprises approximately thirty-two percent of the market, mostly on the northern corridor who will have to make that decision whether or not it is worth it to put their commuters through that again.”
The Belize Bus Association says it is ready to meet with the government immediately to implement a retroactive fuel subsidy program.
Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.
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