Mike Espat is one of the most senior parliamentarians serving in the House. He was first elected a Toledo East representative way back in 1988. Since then, he's won a few, and lost a few, but he's stayed in the fight - and his rambling, wistful contribution to the debate late in the evening yesterday, sure seemed a lot more endearing that much of the bluster and braggadocio that's par for the course in the tedious budget debate.
The Minister of State who's a full time area rep spoke about every major issue affecting his community from too much annual rainfall to too few doctors at the hospital, to too much baby making in the villages.
He also praised the initiative of his constituents in going out and getting land for themselves:
Mike Espat, Toledo East
"The minister has done a lot of help in regards to land, but like I said Punta Gorda Town may have to acquire. But when we leave Punta Gorda Town all the way to Bella Vista, we have all the land you could think about. We have already surveyed 164 lots and we are now in the process of surveying over 700 lots to help the people, because those people are not like our Belizean brothers and sisters. Those people are not complacent. Minister, I want you to help me, but If you don't help me, I am going to Belmopan and if they have to make 5 trips to Belmopan, they will come to Belmopan to get what they want done. That is the type of people we are dealing with in that area. They are very serious about getting what they want."
And, here's what Espat said about the shortage of doctors and qualified medical staff at the PG community hospital:
Mike Espat, Toledo East
"The problem is no hay doctor. I think the need 5 doctors. We have about 4-5 different qualification required for nurses. We do not have a pharmacist. So what is UB doing? I thought they were supposed to be training people in pharmacy, people in nursing, but whenever the nurses they trained, they are gone to happy hunting ground. They are looking for better way of life. We wanted a gynaecologist, hardest thing in the world to find. We advertised it, because most of our problem is pregnancy and that is what have that ambulance up and down that road night and day, because they don't stop make babies."
