We also asked Minister Ferguson about another topic stirring debate in political circles: how ministers use their annual allowances. ‘I use everything.’ That’s what Ferguson told us when we asked how much of his thirty-two thousand dollar annual allowance goes to supporting his constituents. The allowance is at the centre of an intense debate over whether ministers should take a cut, triggered by remarks from Deputy Prime Minister Cordel Hyde. Ferguson says he understands what his colleague is saying. But he argues that politicians are not rich and still have to find money to help their voters.
Rodwell Ferguson, Minister of Agriculture
“Let me tell you something, sir. I have the biggest constituency in the country of Belize. I have eleven thousand voters. I represent twenty-six villages, and these villages have their own demands, and they have their own requests. So, if I put a football field in San Ignacio, it benefits the entire San Ignacio. If I put a football field in Santa Cruz and the others don’t have any, they also want their own. So it is difficult as a representative of a huge constituency. But I understand the cry and the request from the deputy prime minister. Whatever the case may be, I support.”
Paul Lopez
“So you use some of your allowances, that thirty-two thousand dollars, to support your constituents?”
Rodwell Ferguson
“I use everything, boss. You feel like politics is an easy ball game. And people look at politics and say politicians are rich. But they don’t know what they do. In fact, right now I have the Rodwell Ferguson cup going on for the last four months.”
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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