On Friday we told you about the quarter million dollar pre owned Toyota Land Cruiser that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs purchased from Car Guys for Minister Francis Fonseca.
Today he took all questions about this controversial acquisition:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs
"People are saying you can't be buying a pre-owned vehicle for a quarter million dollars. Well, first of all, let me say this. And I'm a public official. Elected public official. I'm a minister of government. So any action that I take, any decisions we make are obviously open to public scrutiny, media scrutiny. I understand that, I appreciate that. Now I have been in as you know, I've been, elected representative for 22 years. And I think, you know, during those 22 years, nobody can reasonably, suggest - now you are not always reasonable - but nobody can reasonably suggest that I am someone who is, you know, wasteful or extravagant in any way. In fact, I think I've developed quite the opposite reputation. So that, I want to make that point. From 2020 to 2025, I was using, Land Cruiser Prado, assigned to the Ministry of Education. That was handed down to me being used from a former minister of UDP Minister. I didn't buy any new vehicle."
"So when I moved over to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they informed me, I was informed, that a diplomatic ally had made a grant to the ministry for the purchase of vehicles, one of which was to be assigned to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. That was grant money. No public funds were used in the purchase of of this vehicle. No taxpayers money. No taxpayers money. Not. Yes. No taxpayers money."
"Now, they said, alright we will buy a pre-owned Land Cruiser? Navy blue. Those things were… White, though. Now it's blue. Yeah. Yeah. That. So that was really the end of my involvement in the process. I'm not involved with negotiating. And so that was it. That was it."
"So, yeah, I mean, you could always, of course, question the value of these things. But from my understanding, they got value for money. That's the price of these vehicles."
Jules Vasquez:
"Was it, was it vanity to have this white, white vehicle painted as a very attractive matte blue? Is that something you requested?"
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs
"Man, I just said, what is vain about me, sir? I mean, you've known me for a long time. Vanity is not a word you associate with me. So, no, I think it was their desire to deliver to me what we ordered. What? What we said. We would order. And, you know, if if I, if we could have stopped the painting, that would that would have been good. I think that should have been done. We shouldn't have painted it."
