?On further review of other documents,? the release added, ?the Special Select Committee is of the view that the Social Security Investment Committee was not properly covered by the appropriate instruments of appointment for a period of six months, even though it proceeded with regular meetings.?

The chairman of the Committee, Senator Godwin Hulse, declined comment on the press release today, indicating that the committee plans to communicate only via press releases until a public hearing is held. But he had no idea when the public hearing would be called.

Initially, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry had recommended a special audit and today, the media was informed that the Committee plans to hire ?a special purpose auditor? to help investigate the dealings of the Social Security Board since 1999 – the year the securitization program began. (For more details, see page 15 of this issue.)

Recently, the SSB reported that as of July 31, 2004, it had lent out roughly $140 million to the Development Finance Corporation (DFC), credit unions, associations, private businesses and building societies. SSB loans are far more attractive than those from commercial banks?and have better interest rates than even DFC, promoted as the poor people?s bank?with interest rates ranging from 8% to 13%.

The remainder of the SSB?s $239 million investment portfolio included $62 million deposited in banks, $10 million invested in real estate, $28 million in shares of the Belize Electricity Limited and the Belize Water Services, and about $150,000 in Atlantic Bank shares.

The issue that led to the Senate inquiry in the first place was the revelation that the Social Security Board had guaranteed loans for the companies of former ruling PUP Cabinet Minister, Glenn D. Godfrey, under the securitization program.

Under that program, the Government, through the DFC and the SSB, pooled over $200 million worth of mortgages and sold them on the foreign market. This allowed Government to have ready cash that could be lent again, rather than wait for the borrowers to pay off their long-term debts.

We are reliably informed, however, that the Special Select Committee has so far not reviewed the Godfrey transactions. However, they have begun their review of SSB?s lending to the DFC, which had not paid anything towards its $40 million debt to the SSB since last July.

The members of the Special Select Committee are Senator Godwin Hulse, who represents the BBB/BCCI; Hon. Dickie Bradley for the People?s United Party; Rev. Hon. Moises Chan for the Belize Council of Churches and the Evangelical Association of Churches; Hon. Arthur Roches for the UDP Opposition, and Hon. Rene Gomez for the National Trade Union Congress of Belize and Civil Society.

To date, Roches has declined to participate in the committee meetings. He has cited a decision from his party that it would not support the inquiry, since it believes that a Commission of Inquiry is the proper way to go about investigating the SSB scandal.