Public Service Union President Dean Flowers is questioning the management of constituency development funds, claiming there has been no proper accounting for the forty-two million dollars allocated to elected representatives over six years. He is also criticizing the additional three million dollars being made available, arguing that the money should instead be administered through the Ministry of Housing to ensure greater accountability in its distribution.
Dean Flowers, President, Public Service Union
“We have handed to these thirty-one elected representatives forty-two million dollars in six years in what we refer to as constituency development funds. To this date, Narda Garcia, John Briceño, Joe Waight, none of them can come to the Belizean people and give us an accountability, an audit of how those forty-two million dollars was spent by these thirty-one elected representatives. And now they want to take us for a bunch of asses, take an additional three million dollars, give up fifty percent, which amounts to about three thousand dollars each. So collectively they gave up two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Zabaneh seh da two hundred thousand, I di give them an extra fifty thousand , and we are now handing them three million dollars, so that they could impoverish we people and treat them like the chicken that same them pluck. You pluck the chicken, you pluck ah live, and then you throw crumbs when ih di shiver, and you make that chicken follow you, and that poor chicken has to depend on you for a livelihood now. That is exactly what John Briceño did yesterday when he gave them this and talk about come fix uno roof. Brother, we got a Ministry of Housing led by Julius Espat. Put the money weh ih deh so that people could account, and that we could have a clear accountability of who di access the money and ensure that people will need the money. And I want to say this to my area representative, Oscar Mira: I di come for my share. I di come for my share of my constituency development fund and my roof money. You could bet that. You could bet, because I’m going live when I go to his constituency for my money, because according to Johnny Briceño, every single Belizean is supposed to get out of this three million.”
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