It's February 3rd and the Ombudsman office is still empty - the same way it has been for months, even though a new Ombudsman has been appointed and approved by parliament. We've told you before that Major Gilbert Swaso hasn't taken up office yet, and at first the PM explained that he was just too busy to deal with it. In a later interview, he said that the appointment had to pass through the House of Representatives first. And that's exactly what happened today. Here's how that went:
John Briceno, Prime Minister
"Madam speaker I think that everybody knows Major Swaso, he had been a public servant all his life, he served with distinction in the Belize Defence Force and then he also served as the mayor of Dangriga. Everyone in Dangriga will tell you that he is a man of the people, he is approachable, he is deeply concerned for his people, for the people in Dangriga, for the Garifuna and on a whole as for all Belizeans. Madam speaker I think this appointment is an easy one that I expect everyone on both sides of the house will support."
