But for a party struggling to maintain public credibility - all that debt is the least of its worries.
First, as candidates for leader, it has two persons - in Arthur Saldivar and Julius Espat - who have never even won a convention much less an election of any kind - and another, Mike Espat who recently lost in Punta Gorda East by 765 votes.
It's not exactly a picture that inspires overwhelming confidence and - as we reported last night - the party is also without a Leader of the Opposition after John Briceno resigned yesterday.
As was discussed in that interview with the Party Chairman - it is a legitimate constitutional crisis.
The situation tonight is that Fort George Representative and a Right Honorable member of the House Said Musa has indicated to the Governor General that he has the support of two other parliamentarians, Francis Fonseca and Florencio Marin Jr. and wishes to be sworn in as leader of the opposition.
But - the decision is for the Governor General, and his duty under the constitution is to determine which member or which group has a majority of the support on the opposition side. As was mentioned in the interview, the GG's office proceeded to call all six PUP Parliamentarians, and John Briceno, Cordel Hyde and Mark Espat all indicated that they do not support Said Musa as Leader of the Opposition.
So it is deadlocked, three to three, none of the PUP's House members enjoys a majority - and the decision is left to the GG, in his deliberate judgment. We should know what the GG decides or does not decide tomorrow, leaving the country's democratic system is a weird sort of limbo, without a parliamentary leader of the opposition for the first time in modern history.
It is history, but, the kind of history that Prime Minister Dean Barrow wants to ensure does not turn into triumphalism for his party. He today told us he is confident the PUP will make a comeback:
Prime Minister Dean Barrow - Prime Minister of Belize
"Well the whole spectacle that's playing out is fascinating. It is worrying in a slight degree. We have to be concerned if there is any indication of a serious crisis in the Opposition such as would disable it - such as would make it ineffectual. And to the extent that that is way in which some people are viewing the developments, I have to be concerned. In politics, on very many occasions, perception is reality. But I don't genuinely think that this crossroads that the PUP - the Opposition - has reached is meaning that there is any kind of a terminal problem. I don't think this signals the death of the PUP at all, and I don't think it signals the death of the Opposition. It's going to take some doing, but I think they will come out of this. And I think that they will, sooner rather than later, choose a new leader, and things will continue much as they had before."
Jules Vasquez
"Are you concerned that for this important House Meeting on Friday, when this controversial 9th amendment to the Constitution will be brought back to the House, that there may not be a Leader of the Opposition? As of right now, we have no formal leader."
Prime Minister Dean Barrow
"It makes no difference at all to a passage or otherwise of the bill. There have been very many occasions before when the Opposition has boycotted, and so, apart from perhaps punctuating the psychological fallout from all that is happening, there is no practical or material consequence to the formal Constitutional absence of a Leader of the Opposition. Look, I want to be very careful, and I think that I'm trying to be as sober as possible, and repeat what I said. I don't think that this is any death knell of the PUP. If it did signal any death knell, I would be extremely concerned. They are having serious problems, you can't deny that, but I honestly believe that these are problems they will work through. These are problems I want them to work through. This is no occasion for any kind of gloating on the part of the Government. This is no occasion for any kind of rejoicing, but I am - by now - an old and experienced politician. I haven't seen anything quite like this before, but nothing really surprises me. And I am convinced of the eternal capacity - almost eternal capacity - of parties to right themselves and come back from crisis. I should know. The UDP has certainly come back from crisis before. I sympathize with the difficulties of Mr. Espat - the difficulties sketched by Mr. Espat - but somebody else will rise to the challenge. I spent 10 years in the wilderness. But that, there, is a difficulty experienced by the PUP in terms of raising money going forward. It cannot be denied and I'm saying that I've been there. There is something wrong with the culture of the PUP indeed, when the party will start to feel that without money, and a great deal of money, you can't be effective - you can't win an election. I am here to tell them that is simply not true. We have won every election that we've won without any serious money - without any money of the order of what the PUP is used to. So really, I am certain, as I said, that they will pick themselves up, and they will move forward."
Jules Vasquez
"How will you discipline your party to not be seduced as they naturally are by the idea of one-party rule. And I have spoken to UDP's - and this is natural - who are rejoicing and are saying that well, 'We are getting another 10 years now.'"
Prime Minister Dean Barrow
"I would strongly caution against that, and we discussed this matter in Cabinet yesterday, because we got the news while we were in Cabinet, of what had happened with Mr. Espat. And I will tell you that if that kind of a sentiment is being expressed at the rank-and-file level, it is not a sentiment that is espoused or embraced by people in Cabinet at all. We are very conscious of two things: in politics, a week is an eternity, so you might appear to be irreversibly on top one moment, and the next moment it all comes crashing down. I don't think that scenario likely, but it is certainly possible. And secondly, nobody in my cabinet is to even contemplate the prospect of becoming swell-headed. That way lies disaster. We have to be very firm in terms of holding unto our instincts - our better instincts, our best instincts - which must be to try to continue to govern in a way that is humble, and in a way that we can argue convincingly is in the best interest of the country."
