The Prime Minister gave his annual state of the nation address today, and we'll have more details on that later. But tonight the story is, again, about Sunshine Holdings Limited. It's a company whose proponents claims it will simply hold 20% of BTL's shares in trust for the Communication Workers Union, but the Communication Workers want no part of it.
Well, we've been reporting that for months, but guess what, it's news to the Prime Minister. As far as he's concerned Sunshine is the only deal on the table and BTL's Communication Workers had better learn to live with it. He today discussed that deal and the issue of Social Security lending money to a company affiliated with Michael Ashcroft.
Jules Vasquez,
Mr. Prime Minister can you say why you went to the Social Security Board on Friday and made a personal intervention for, and on behalf, of Sunshine Holdings Limited to approve the $10 million Social Security loan?
Said Musa, Prime Minister of Belize
"Because I felt it was important to get a consensus from the Board. As you know, from the previous day, we had gotten a majority, as I understand it, but I felt that it was important to get the social partners involved as well and I explained to them that this money was to be used to purchase the shares in BTL, to create a trust fund that would be made available to the workers of BTL. I disabused them of the idea which was being perpetrated, I suspect by the media, some sections of the media, and certain persons in the union movement, that this Sunshine Limited had anything to do with Michael Ashcroft, or Belize Bank, or any such thing. In fact Sunshine is simply a vehicle that has been created to make the shares available in trust for the workers."
Jules Vasquez,
But are Sunshine's headquarters not at Michael Ashcroft's 212 North Front Street Headquarters? Are the signatories not...
Said Musa,
"It could have been anywhere, a shell company is first of all formed, it could have been at any law firm, and (with) any two subscribers. What is important to analyze is what will happen to the company once the trust comes into effect."
Jules Vasquez,
But its an investment company, the first item in its memorandum says its to invest in BTL shares.
Said Musa,
"Yes and its getting this investment through a loan from the Belize Bank, 50%, a loan from the government, 25%, and a loan from Social Security."
Jules Vasquez,
The union has said it doesn't want anything to do with Sunshine, the Communication Workers' Union.
Said Musa,
"I am yet to hear that."
Stewart Krohn, Channel 5 News
"Prime Minister what is the status of that deal with Sunshine?"
Said Musa,
"The status now is that I believe in the next two days we will finalize the arrangement and then sit down with the BWSL (BTL) workers, Belize Communication Workers Union, and say, 'this is the package and are you still interested, yes or no.'"
Jules Vasquez,
And if they are not interested?
Said Musa,
"And then we'll have to look at our alternative to see whether we shouldn't hold the shares in trust for all Belizeans, or for all workers of Belize for that matter."
Jules Vasquez,
The Sunshine loan is an unsecured loan, the SSB's attorney cautioned against it because it is unsecured. Is this just, as the Opposition has intimated, is this just because government is desperate for money to meet its significant external obligations and is seeking to use Social Security money so it can hurriedly get the money to pay its external commitments?
Said Musa,
"On the contrary, one of the objectives of Social Security is to assist those who contribute to that fund and the workers are some of the major contributors of Social Security. Now in this case the people who will benefit most will be the workers of BWSL (BTL), they won't have to pay any exorbitant interest rates, they'll be able to pay at 8.5%, they'll be given a grace period, and all this will be done under a worst case scenario to ensure that BTL will be able, through its dividends, to service that loan."
To clarify: the Prime Minister was referring there to the Communication Workers Union, not the BWSL workers.
