P.m. Says Castro Checks Are Distasteful, But Not Corruption

Dean Barrow

Distasteful and wrong, but not corrupt. That’s a very fine line drawn by Prime Minister Dean Barrow, who has been faced with all manner of accusations against his ministers and officials. Still, the bottom line is that as distasteful as it may be, Castro will face no punishment for the outrageous fleecing of taxpayers’ money. According to PM Barrow, he spoke to Castro after the story aired on Tuesday night, and incredibly, Castro claims that he didn’t know that using the BAA as his personal and political piggy bank was wrong.

Prime Minister Dean Barrow

“As I’ve said, the Airports Authority had the power to issue the cheques, had the power to approve the payments and that is what they did. So technically, everybody is in the clear. I have said to the board that I am extremely disappointed in that and I have said to the minister that I am extremely disappointed in him because of the optics, because it does stink to high heavens. But I cannot say that any offence was committed. I can just accuse both of them of extreme bad judgment.”

Reporter

“Sir but these are public funds. He should not be able to use public funds at his whim or to access them.”

Dean Barrow

“I don’t know if it was at him whim. For whatever purposes he used the funds for, the board, the Belize Airports Authority, approved the issuing of the cheques, the disbursement of the funds to him. I can’t say too many times that I consider that extremely ill-advised and wrong, but every board has the authority to make payment for purposes that the board approves. Some of those purposes, you and I will obviously see as ill-considered and in this case, you can’t get away from that fact—and I am not trying to do that at all—but you must realize that this is not a matter of hair-splitting. Indeed the authority, going through the proper process—by way of board meetings that were convene, by way of their internal protocols that were followed—approved these disbursements. I, had I been on that board, would have absolutely resigned in protest if other board members in the majority had  insisted in doing what was done.”