The Belize City branch of the University of Belize’s Student Government held a press conference this afternoon to make a public demand on the government. They are requesting a sharp increase in government’s subvention to UB – from a million dollars per year to as much as $5 million – or else.
Keith Swift Reporting,
Moses Sulph says that UB needs more classrooms, more class offerings, and ultimately - more money from government.
Moses Sulph, UB Student Government President
“This semester past we were unable to accept new admissions in all the faculties except one which is education due to the fact that the university is at its capacity of students and this is basically saying we do not have any adequate amount of classrooms necessary to accept new students who would like to attend the national university.
The subvention is the only solution that can deal with many of the problems that we face here and it is no doubt that it is only our government, regardless of what government it is, who is responsible to see that we get that adequate funding that we need.”
Sulph says that while promises have been made by government – there have been no commitments.
Moses Sulph,
“We met with the Minister of Education twice before, this was in March of last year, and also in September of last year. So we have consulted, we have presented documents to him whereby we were asking him for about $15 to $20 million so we have been consulting. I had expected that knowing well before they took office, the conditions, the situations, the issues that were lobbying for and advocating for, they would have dealt with it in a more professional manner.
We are asking for you to fulfil these promises you have made. We are very sure and we are hoping that as a man of your word you will lobby your government in the next budget to increase the subvention beyond $1 million. Increase the subvention whereby we can move forward in a way which will provide development at different stages. So if you increase the subvention this year by $5 million and you increase it by $5 million next year, then by the end of five to six years we will have been able to get the additional infrastructure we need. But if we keep holding back on what we need for years then five years will pass and we will be five years behind. So I am calling on you because you are the Minister of Education. I am asking you on behalf of my students to kindly see how you can do the right thing and help the university to develop to where it needs to be.”
And if he doesn’t - Sulph told the packed room of students that means it’s time for action.
Moses Sulph,
“We will not stop until we garner whatever we are trying to accomplish here. So we are calling on the Ministry of Education and we are calling on the government to kindly see how you can increase the subvention in a way whereby it can give adequate development to thing we are trying to accomplish here which is infrastructure and development. $1 million cannot do it so we are saying it full time you give the support to this university that it needs.
We are expecting that these issues ought to be looked at in a serious manner. We are expecting that these issues are dealt with in a serious manner. We’re expecting that not only lip service are given to these issues that we have been advocating for but that serious action are given to these cries that we are having here.
So in no way are we being an enemy of the state or we are trying to be an enemy of the state. We are saying we need these things and we want these things and we want to accomplish these things and we are praying and hoping that we can get it simply by being diplomatic, simply by advocating and we don’t have to result to any confrontation of any sort.”
We note that the Belmopan campus was not a part of this afternoon’s press conference and information to us is that they are choosing consultation over a confrontation with government. Moses Sulph has been UB’s Student Government President for four of the last 5 years.
