Julius Espat responds to GOB over Public Accounts Committee meeting

Posted: Monday, October 30, 2017. 2:08 p.m. CST.

By BBN Staff: Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Julius Espat, issued a release today to clarify a statement from the Government of Belize regarding the absence of several Ministers from the committee’s last meeting.

“On Thursday, October 26th, the four Ministers of Government on the Public Accounts Committee – Ministers John Saldivar, Patrick Faber, Tracy Taegar-Panton and Frank Mena did not show up for the scheduled meeting of the Committee at which the Auditor-General would have been questioned as to the gross irregularities contained in her Financial Report for 2012-2013,” the release explains.

Espat goes on to explain that the public was only officially informed through a GOB press release on Friday that a minister allegedly had the flu and GOB decided it made no sense to send the others.

Espat said GOB’s statement indicated that the Chairman called off the meeting scheduled for October 12th but said that meeting was called off because the Auditor-General was on leave and could not attend.

Espat also said GOB asserted that its members intend to show up for the committee’s next meeting on November 9^th.

“ ALL Ministers must be prepared at all times to give undertaking of how the people’s money is spent, and the PAC is a critical component of that responsibility to the people of Belize,” Espat said.