Kareem Musa Says Community Funds Fully Accounted For

The use of community development funds is once again under public scrutiny after a Freedom of Information request sought detailed records on how taxpayer dollars are being spent across constituencies.  Caribbean Shores Area Representative and Minister of Labour, Kareem Musa, says there is nothing to hide when it comes to the roughly one hundred and eighty thousand dollars allocated annually to his constituency.  When asked whether he would be willing to open the books to the media, Musa explained that all receipts have already been submitted to the relevant government offices and are available through the appropriate channels.

Kareem Musa, Minister of Immigration: “Each of us, each area representative both UDP and PUP, as you have seen, we get an allocation each month. It varies depending on your constituents and numbers. Those receipts have all been forwarded to the Cabinet Secretary’s office, to the Ministry of Finance, and so they have the records. It is now up to them, based on the FOIA request to see if they’re going to release all of those records. I know it’s bulky, could probably fill up this entire room that we’re in right now because it’s been several years since we’ve had the benefit of the Community Development Fund. And so the receipts are many but those are in the possession of the Cabinet Secretary. We have been able to assist constituents personally with housing materials, with medical assistance, funeral expenses, but in terms of projects within our constituency, all five or six parks within our constituency have been refurbished. So Buttonwood Bay, Dolphin Park, Lopez-Mateos Park as a brand new basketball court. We also have Program Park, Noel Ferguson Park as well. So a lot of it has gone into our parks in our constituency. And last year, I think we had graded over 18 streets in the University Heights and other parts of Caribbean Shores. And so you could see where the money is well spent and documented in Caribbean Shores.”

The issue of the funds gained renewed attention after a Freedom of Information request filed by media personality Jerry Enriquez reportedly yielded only a single sheet of paper in response.  However, Prime Minister John Briceño pushed back on the perception that records are lacking, stating that the government maintains extensive documentation to support the expenditure of the funds.

John Briceño, Prime Minister of Belize: “What has happened is that what we have done, and we did not hide it we said it in government, the constituencies what we did we put them in three different categories depending on the number of votes that you have that is one and then we sited under all the different ways you can spend that money. Thirdly we were very strict that if you do not give your receipts and you do not report how you spend that money you do not get any more money until that happens. A number of area representatives were upset because we were not giving them the money and I said it in Cabinet, I said it in caucuses, everybody including myself we have to report every dollar that we get to first it was to Mrs.Garcia and now to the Cabinet Secretary. Now as to the receipts we have to make sure that the receipts are properly documented. And I know that some may say well the Prime Minister you get extra money of late I was getting some extra money simply because everybody in the country asks me for help not only Orange Walk Central. And so I use that money to be helping people in Toledo, in Belize City all over for sports, education, health, you name it and that is the only reason but this is done by proportion on the amount of registered votes like I said three categories and even the opposition gets that money. I need to add when we were in opposition we got zero, we got nothing from the government. Not once I got a grocery bag, or BOOST or monies to be able to help the constituency. We believe that we have to do differently and that we have t respect the will of the Belizean people.”

The Prime Minister also extended an invitation for Enriquez to personally review the documents, describing the records as substantial and reaffirming the administration’s position that the expenditures are properly accounted for.  Briceño further explained that funding allocations differ among constituencies, noting that factors such as population size help determine how resources are distributed.