Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola Oscar Rosado Junior has been making lots of news recently. First, in December, he resigned from the PUP - he says - after receiving death threats, and then he appeared at his former opponent, Boots Martinez's convention endorsing him.
And now, Rosado is making news again, this time because he has resigned from the Belizeans for Justice. Since the organization was formed a year ago, Rosado had been the treasurer - but on Saturday he delivered a letter to President Yolanda Schackron saying that he's quitting because the organization has lost sight of its core mission and gotten political.
He told us as much in an interview this morning:
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former Treasurer, Belizeans For Justice
"The main reason is that we started with one focus and that was supposed to be a support group for the grieving mothers and to put pressure on the system especially the justice system where a lot of murderers get away and people on their own can't fight and so we started out as a pressure group and we had plans to implement and keep that pressure going and of course every thing we decided we did it with our general membership which is about 250-300 people. Now we haven't had a general meeting for over 4 months and people have been coming to me and asking me 'how are you all making these decisions?' Especially now with the 13th Senator, the coalition for the oil drilling, and they haven't had a say, so people want to find out why we are going out there and we don't have the input of the general membership."
"I can't continue with just the executive making decisions and nobody else knowing what is behind it."
Jules Vasquez
"But you are a member of the executive so then you participated in those decisions?"
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola
"I did not participate in those decisions."
Jules Vasquez
"So it's not an executive making decisions?"
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola
"Right, it's a couple people making decisions. I know I was told a day before we did a television interview about the 13th Senator and I was promised that I was going to get what as I asked what would be the role of a Senator. I know as a NGO community it's something good. But my problem with it is that it's coming from politicians that have joined in with Belizeans for Justice and I am afraid that they are using the organization to get that extra Senator instead of it being a NGO, it could be controlled by...."
Jules Vasquez
"Wait that's a serious....you are saying Belizeans For justice is being manipulated, instrumentalised to pursue a political agenda? How do you reach there? Anthony Sylvestre is a politician but he is just their attorney."
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola
"Yes, he is the attorney and I would say if there is no agenda why not come to the people? I mean if it was brought to our attention by him, Mr. Sylvestre, and, yes, he is the lawyer for Belizeans For Justice but the membership needs to know, that's my problem. Why just the lawyer and the president and a couple people? Nobody else, not even me. But could it be that they are using the organization because they feel like they have this person controlled? It could be that we could make a big mistake so that's what we have to be cautious about. And I will say that some of the people that I think will now use the organization and are now using it for their political mileage and I would say with this 13th Senator."
Jules Vasquez "Might you also be pursuing a political agenda in sensing that they are going against a government which you have publicly come out in support of and that you are now sweating fever for the government of the day? How do you respond to that criticism?"
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola
"Well to begin with I don't sweat fever for anybody and everybody knows that, not even when I was a member of the People's United Party."
Jules Vasquez
"Do you feel Belizeans for Justice has lost its way or is not staying true to its original goals?"
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola
"For the past 4 months we have not been tackling and we have not been putting pressure. We haven't even been visiting, you know when somebody gets killed, or shot at, or assaulted, whatever, we promised many of our members that those that did not get justice we were going to pursue and make sure that cases were called back. Why don't we use a lawyer to help us and advise us on what to do? But we must not forget what our mission was, what our goal was and that was to get justice."
And, just clearing shoal before pulling out, Rosado says that though he was Treasurer, he never handled money for the organization:
Oscar Rosado Jr. - Former PUP Standard Bearer for Port Loyola
"And the reason I want to make it public that as the treasurer of Belizeans for Justice, no monies came to me through fundraisers which we had through donations but I will not say that I mistrust Mrs. Shackron because monies that came, went to her but she has helped the organization. The organization has given back to the community. But I know that as an NGO we are supposed to give reports yearly to the government and there is none to give because we have nothing documented."
Rosado says that he considered Yolanda Shackron and Joan Sutherland to be his best friends - but alleges that they stopped calling him after he withdrew from politics.
He says he will now work with the church and if the Belizeans for Justice returns to its original focus, he will get back in.
