Nevertheless, former Mayor Bradley and City Administrator Miller had already signed the check
BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Apr. 5, 2018– In his early days on the job as Belize City Mayor, Bernard Wagner has encountered a $6,361 problem that he inherited from the previous United Democratic Party (UDP) City Council led by his predecessor, Mayor Darrell Bradley.
It would have been perfectly legitimate if this bill was for the benefit of Belize City residents, but it was not. The bill was racked up by Mayor Bradley’s father, Joseph “Joe” Bradley, who was eating and drinking at the Belize City Council’s expense, in what Mayor Wagner told Amandala was “a gross abuse by Mayor Bradley.”
Joe Bradley, who is also host of the governing UDP’s Fus Thing Da Mawnin talk show, worked at City Hall as a compliance officer, but he was not authorized to incur expenses on behalf of the Council, Mayor Wagner told Amandala in an interview at his office late this afternoon.
Bradley not only used the Council to buy on credit food and drinks (not soft drinks) at Chon Sing Chinese restaurant, which is right across the street from City Hall, but Mayor Bradley and City Administrator Candice Miller had already signed a check to pay the bill, but the check had not been delivered as yet.
We asked Mayor Wagner if the Council still has to pay the merchant, given that Joe Bradley did not have the legal authority to incur expenses on its behalf.
Mayor Wagner said that the payment had already been approved, then added, “but when I took office, I put a freeze on it. I put a hold on all expenditures. Legally, I don’t know what the implications are, since this was done before I took over.”
Mayor Wagner said that he would seek legal advice on how to proceed with the Joe Bradley payment.
“Clearly, this is abuse; it is just the tip of the iceberg,” Mayor Wagner said.