But while the government has been working on that new proposal, PUP media strategists have also been directing a vicious ad campaign against the unions. And they've used Commissioner of Police Dr Richard Rosado as the tip of the spear for the government's attack In some of them.
We asked the Minister of Home Affairs how he felt about his new commissioner being used in attack ads and about the PSU president's claim that Dr Rosado is weaponizing the department against the unions.
Kareem Musa, Minister of Home Affairs & New Growth Industries
"The Belize Police Department and Dr. Rosado are not the ones creating any sort of ads. We are not in any way trying to attack the union. So let us not try to bridge those two or combine those two together. "
"I believe those are political ads. I believe if you look back at the history of how this all started, I believe that Mr. Flowers was personally heavily attacking the commissioner of police, calling him a bully, calling him a puppet, quite unreasonably so and unjustifiably so, in my opinion."
"Dr. Rosado has only been acting in his most professional capacity. I think they handle all of the demonstrations quite professionally. Obviously, the one in Dangriga went on a little longer, went on for almost two hours."
"And of course, the police department have a responsibility to commuters and to citizens. And so that situation got a little tense. Obviously, the commissioner was able to sit down with the unions after that and they were able to make peace."
"And so the commissioner has always accepted and honored the request of unions when they want to peacefully protest. It's just that there has to be this level of cooperation and understanding, which I think the unions have since demonstrated."
