The controversy over the Port of Magical Belize and its definitive agreement has spawned a fierce smear campaign on the nightly news - with ads and counter ads racing back and forth.
But, what if Magical Belize didn't even have a license to operate as a port in the first place? That's the allegation in an out-of-the-blue press release which came today from the Belize Port Authority. It says, quote, "the developers of the Port of Magical Belize have not applied for, nor have they been granted, a license for the construction and operation of a private port as required by the Belize Port Authority Act."
The release stresses that the Belize Port Authority is the "designated Authority responsible to determine which facility shall be a 'Port Facility'." They say they were not consulted on the Definitive Agreement, stating, "The Belize Port Authority, nor the Ministry in charge of Logistics, were consulted in relation to that agreement, nor were they consulted in relation to the proposed legislation that would give legal effect to the terms of such agreement."
This is another setback for the Port of Magical Belize whose Definitive Agreement was signed by a Minister of the previous government and has been sent back by the PUP Cabinet for review.
