That opportunity to speak with the Prime Minister about the Stevedores happened at a short adjournment during today's House Meeting in Belmopan that ran for almost 6 hours. It's not one of those marathon sessions of the recent past, but there were several important pieces of draft legislation that the Briceno Government took Parliament. But, we start first with their Supplementary Appropriation Bill Number 3 for the current fiscal year.
The government came to the House to seek parliamentary approval for a little over 70 million dollars in additional public spending. Today, the newly re-appointed Opposition Leader, "Shyne" Barrow, took aim at the 23 million dollars listed as a line item for the Ministry of Health.
Here's how we harshly criticized this supplementary appropriation bill:
Hon. Moses "Shyne" Barrow, Leader of the Opposition
"Has to be the worst management of finance ever that we have seen in our history. How is it that these cost that you keep coming back for were not anticipated? What were the finance people doing as they planned this budget that almost every other house meeting you're coming back for millions of dollars? You projected your estimates and now you've come back again and again as if you want us to applaud the fact that you're coming back to tell us that you are over spending and you have such gross and negligent management of the finances of this country. This is alarming. The last house meeting they ask for money for the ministry of health, the minister has since been fired and I can see why and I am saying to the prime minister this has to stop, this is fiscal haemorrhaging, fiscal bleeding. You set a budget in April and we understand that things happens and you have to come back and I appreciate that you come back to the house and you tell us what it is you're going to spend, but what I don't appreciate is the gross mismanagement, the negligence, because I will refrain from saying rocket and hustle. I will not accuse anyone of that, but I will say that it is mismanagement, it is negligence, it is incompetence, it is a dire lack of talent. Questions have to be asked when you come into this house and you're asking the tax payers to front another 23 million dollars for the ministry of health. What is going on?"
