by: Rudolph A. Neal
BELIZE CITY, Thurs. May 1, 2025
From December of last year, the horses were all lined up and ready for the race. Obviously, some horses were better groomed and prepared for the race than others. Actually, the opposition team lost many of their horses just before the race was set to begin, and many of their other horses were not groomed for a race of such magnitude. Nonetheless, the bugle blew, and the horses that made it to the line, whether late or in bad shape, took off—and as was expected, the incumbent thoroughbreds mashed up the race in a massive sweep. With the race over, all eyes were fixed on the moves and actions that would come; but in the aftermath of the scaled-down celebrations, there has been an eerie silence, with little to no movement or action taking place since. While the country awaits action amid an eerie silence, it almost seems like a false start.
At the height of Holy Week, a time of somber reflection for most Christians, and when Belizeans were in a flurry to finalize their travel plans for the Easter vacation, news gripped the country, and we watched in real-time and listened to the eerie chronology of events as a domestic flight was hijacked. This was a big deal. A huge deal. ‘Cause for as long as we can remember, and for as far back as recent history goes, this relatively heinous and dangerous act had not taken place. It is, in fact, a nascent phenomenon in Belize’s aviation history. While we now know the outcome of that incident, and can piece together information and stick facts here and there together, what struck the country was the eerie silence that followed that incident, and how our political leaders were practically mum on an incident of such magnitude, that had Belizeans on edge!
And no, we are not blowing it out of proportion! Neither are we making a mountain out of a molehill! That was an incident of national importance that required (in my view) an urgent and coordinated press conference with our political and aviation leaders. While the (then) Police Commissioner did a fairly decent job in apprising the public immediately thereafter (and kudos to him for doing so), I believe the nation was to be briefed through a structured press conference that involved government officials and leadership. And yes, you may say there was a press briefing a couple of days ago, which came almost two weeks after the incident and was woefully insufficient. In the days after the hijacking and the weeks leading up to that press briefing, there was an eerie silence, and that is unacceptable.
And keeping on the matter of eerie silence, the country was plunged into a state of quiet, along with low-key murmurs and many unanswered questions after the March 12th general elections. After such a resounding victory, one would have thought that steam would fill the air as busy trains work the railways, chugging along the tracks. But listen—listen carefully; do you hear that? Nothing! Eerie silence. Since the general elections, everything has just gone quiet. No Budget, no hustle and bustle, no grinding, no chugging, no steam. Just eerie silence.
And how come? It didn’t take rocket science or quantum physics to have been able to predict the outcome of the recent general elections. Why, almost two months after the general election, is the country operating without a budget? When will a meeting of the House of Representatives be convened and the financial appropriation bill be presented and debated? We can’t just sit idly by and be consumed by the eerie silence, and lose focus on the issues of national importance and the things that matter for a functioning country and robust democracy. Too much time has passed, and the silence is too eerie. It really boggles the mind and begs the question: What is going on? (And) Was there a false start?
The silence is eerie.
Unchained Reflections Of A Liberal Pragmatist!
(AMANDALA Ed. Note: A GoB press release on April 30 notified the public that “the Fourteenth Session of the House of Representatives and the Fifteenth Session of the Senate of the National Assembly of Belize will be formally opened on Friday, 9th May 2025, in front of the Sir Edney Cain Building, Belmopan …” However, it did not mention the presentation of the Budget.)