November 11, 2010
Dear Editor,
The public should be aware that the recent (October 19) Recall of Elected representatives Act is well intentioned, and if fairly written, would give the checks and balances to prevent representatives from misusing their offices.
However, when you read the law itself, it is impractical and impossible to ever have a recall election, unless both political parties want the same representative recalled.
The Act states that if petitioners get 30% of the registered voters in a representative’s area, they may put him up for recall. The catch is, that at the ensuing election, 65% of the registered electors must vote or the election is invalid. Not 65% of the average voter turnout.
We know that Belize has two parties, red and blue, and there are diehard reds and diehard blues of at least 25 or 30% that vote in each election and will vote for their party candidate always. They are committed party followers.
If you subtract the number of either reds or blues from the total voters, you will not even have 65%.
The simplest solution to keep someone in office who is up for recall is to tell your party members, who support the representative being recalled, NOT TO VOTE. There wouldn’t even be 40% turnout, and the election will be invalid.
This Act pays lip service to a good idea but the practicality is missing. It is a hollow bill because the total turnout for elections in the past has only averaged a total turnout of 65 or 70% with all citizens voting. The numbers required Act (65%) make it physically impossible to remove anybody from office. If the Government is serious about putting checks and balances for public response, they should review the Act and redo it so that it works.
Removing anybody from office will never happen, and I would have to suggest that the people who wrote this Act were aware of that, and if not, should find another job. The Act, as written, is an insult to all thinking Belizeans.
George Hardie