VOICE OF THE COMMON MAN THE FUELING OF DECEITS AND FALSITIES

By Hilly Bennett

Undoubtedly, the People’s United Party (PUP) is on target to the planBelize mandate going forward to 2025. However, it is critical to keep the fire burning on the United Democratic Party (UDP) holding them accountable for the failures and gross incompetence and vile corruption of their 13 years of abuse and neglect of people and country. Considering the “poison chalice “dealt to John Briceño on November 2020, it is amazing the quick economic recovery, the restoration of the Healthcare System, the social investment geared towards the improvement of the impoverished and downtrodden… the list goes on.

But to talk about the varying injustices inflicted by the UDP would not suffice. The positive vision for the Jewel embodied in planBelize and the promise of what a PUP government would do has fast become a reality experienced in the Belizean society. This reality has spun the Leader of the Opposition into deep denial.

Leader of the Opposition, Shyne Barrow, the politically connected United Democratic Party (UDP) media mouthpiece incessantly attempts to undermine the historic, unprecedented accomplishment of the People’s United Party (PUP) with the fueling of deceits and falsities. Understandably, the LOO cunning to shore up his limp leadership of his dying party. The huge reduction in Belize’s public debt, poverty reduction and the reduction in regards to unemployment by the John Briceño administration gives cause for the UDP’s denial of the validity of the numbers.

On Monday, April 17, 2023, on Sunup on Seven, the Prime Minister, Honorable John Briceño tore to shreds, the baseless and meritless nonsense by Shyne, that his family is benefiting from the taxes on fuel. Additionally, the PM showed that contrary to the Barrow regime, he has engaged measures to mitigate the costs of fuel at the pump. The PM in discussing oil prices expressed “we are collecting less taxes today on a gallon of fuel than what was being collected under the UDP, I’ve tried to hold it down as much as possible. When I have said that we want to keep diesel in a position of $9, we did not have the Ukraine war…But because of these things where there is absolutely nothing we can do, we are trying to keep diesel at no higher than $13 and then last year we gave up about $35 million in taxes.”

For context in June of 2018 the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry wrote to UDP Prime Minister Dean Barrow asking for a meeting to discuss lowering fuel prices. Barrow wrote back saying he didn’t see a solution. B.C.C.I. asserted that there was room for the Barrow Government to reduce, at that time, the excise tax on fuel. In March 2017, the Barrow Government made an amendment to the Customs and Excise Schedule (No 29 of 2017) in order to maintain a two-percent primary surplus to fulfill a commitment to bond holders in connection with the restructuring of the commercial debt. This has become a stickler to the Briceño government’s formula in calculating the pump price on the Belizean consumer.

In 2018, Barrow had pointed out that fuel taxes are some of the broadest based taxes available to any government. Barrow added that any significant reduction in those taxes would, immediately bore huge holes in government’s budget. He continued explaining that the shortfall would have had to be made up from somewhere else. Barrow proffered several alternatives.

One of the solutions was increasing GST from 12.5 percent to 15 percent, the environmental tax from 3 percent to 7 percent, and to increase the business tax from 2.5 percent to 3.75 percent. Another alternative by Barrow Government was to implement an across-the-board salary cut of 12 percent for all public officers. Alternatively, the government would have terminated some 3,000 officers in the junior grades, or reduced pension by 55 percent. Understanding that these alternatives to reducing fuel prices, Barrow kept his knees on the Belizean consumer. Barrow did not have a solution but today John Briceño has made the impossible, possible.

Belize is a net importer for fuel products and consequently has to contend with the global prices and the associated acquisition costs. Additionally, Belize has to contend with oil price shocks which could result in a drag on its economic growth prospects. As explained by the Business Perspective in a paper, it highlighted that higher energy costs could lead to a downside risk on the economy. This is exactly what the IMF concluding statement alluded to that high energy prices can weigh down on any net-oil-importing jurisdictions worldwide. A major risk was/is the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the PUP Government’s policy responses was the capping of diesel and the reduction of excise tax on regular fuel. Showing the deceit by Dean Barrow that nothing could have been done to alleviate the cost of fuel at the pumps. Honorable Christopher Coye, Minister of State, Ministry of Finance explained that this Government has had to act understanding the extreme impact not only of global inflation and supply chain but the war in Ukraine, specifically. Similar to what Prime Minister, John Briceño, Coye showed that if annualized, the reduction in pump prices would be the equivalent of roughly $20 million dollars.

So when the nonsensical intellectual is spewing utter nonsense without an inkling of the calculated pump price the John Briceño administration is finding solutions to ease the pain on the Belizean consumers. Unlike Shyne’s fuel deceits, John Briceño and the PUP are charting the way to a better Belize.

COUNTRYWIDE PUBLIC AUCTION SALES: PROPERTY

Hopkins Village, Stann Creek District; Hattieville, Belize District; Belmopan; Duck Run, Cayo District;

BY ORDER of the Mortgagees Messrs. The Belize Bank Limited, Licensed Auctioneers Kevin A. Castillo and Christiana R. Castillo are selling ONLINE via belizepropertyauctions.com the following properties. Sales currently running until 30th June 2023. Public Auction Sales will expire fortnightly on the dates and times listed on the website until these properties are sold.

1. BEACHFRONT center of Hopkins Village where the main Hopkins Road meets the sea, Stann Creek District:

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 116 comprising 800 square yards of land situate in Hopkins Village, Stann Creek District, bounded and described as shown by Plan Dated August 6th, 2013, attached to Minister’s Fiat Grant No. 465 of 2013 together with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon. ( Being 3 wooden structures; Building A – elevated timber structure; Building B – elevated timber and plywood structure; Building C – timber with thatched roof structure with wooden rails TOGETHER with lot [7,200 Sq. Ft] situate at the SEAFRONT center of Hopkins Village where the main Hopkins Road meets the sea, Stann Creek District, the freehold property of Ms. Virginia Casimiro.)

2. Lot No. 19 Hattieville Village, Belize District:

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land situated in Hattieville Village Belize District and numbered Lot No. 19 containing 880.309 Square Meters bounded and described as shown by Plan No. 351 attached to Minister’s Fiat Grant No. 351/16 together with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon. (Being a lot [9,475 sq. ft.] situate in Hattieville Village Belize District, the freehold property of Mr. Roberto Chavarria Jr.)

3. Parcel No. 5276 Starkey Hill Street, Belmopan, Cayo District:

REGISTRATION SECTION BLOCK PARCEL

Belmopan 20 5276

The freehold property of Ms. Dawn Leslie

(Being a concrete bungalow dwelling house [1,540 sq. ft.], containing 3 Bedrooms + 2 Bathrooms + Living/Dining/ Kitchen + Laundry/Storeroom TOGETHER with lot [501.722 S.M.] situate on Starkey Hill Street, Belmopan, Cayo District, the freehold property of Ms. Dawn Leslie.)

4. Lot No. 74 (386.146 ACRES) Duck Run Area, Cayo District:

All that lot piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 74 from a sub-division containing 386.146 acres done by Licensed Surveyor C.W.

“FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION & PHOTOGRAPHS PLEASE VISIT WEBSITE”

TERMS: STRICTLY CASH

KEVIN A. CASTILLO

TELEPHONE: 223-4488

Website: belizepropertyauctions.com

Email: kevinacas@yahoo.com

Facebook: Belize Auctions