Former PUP Area Representative Carlos Diaz Laid to Rest: Remembered as Stalwart Party Member

Former politician and entrepreneur, Carlos Diaz was laid to rest yesterday.   The former area representative for the Lake Independence Constituency and a stalwart member of the People’s United Party passed away at the age of 75 last Thursday. An official funeral service was planned by the Government of Belize, held at the St. Martin’s Parish in Belize City. Speaking at the funeral, Fort George Area Representative Henry Charles Usher, compared Diaz to an “old rugged cross” which many members of the People’s United Party clung to and cherished.  

Diaz spent one term as a minister of government in the cabinet of the Right Honorable George Price from 1989 to 1993. But in that space of time, he was a part of various projects that are still notable to this day. He would enter the political arena once again in 2012, but as an independent candidate, rather than with his beloved party.  He ran in the Lake I division again against the United Democratic Party’s Mark King and the PUP’s Martin Galvez but was unsuccessful. During his speech, Usher noted that members of the PUP, when considering the amount of work done during Diaz’s political career, all agreed that it felt as if he had served several terms.

Apart from his political career, Diaz founded and managed the widely known portable toilet rental company Carlos Diaz Equipment. He operated his business out of the Lake I community, where he also lived.