BELIZE CITY. Mon. Aug 9, 2021Today, the Public Service Union (PSU) released a statement which censures the Government of Belize for what they call political nepotism after dozens of government-funded mobile accounts across several ministries were switched from the nationally owned telecommunications company, Belize Telemedia Limited, to the privately owned Smart service, provided by Speednet Ltd.

As is well known, the Prime Minister’s family members are among the principal shareholders of Speednet Communication Ltd.

The release from the PSU asserts that BTL cellular accounts assigned to departments and personnel within the Ministry of Rural Transformation, Community Development, Labour and Local Government were replaced with Smart mobile accounts.

The PSU additionally reported that the  Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already made arrangements for Smart service to be installed at the newly constructed Leigh Richardson building and that certain units within the Ministry of Economic Development are also poised to switch to Smart.

 

The release from the PSU states, “The fact that the Government of Belize has majority ownership in BTL, versus the fact that SMART is owned by the Prime Minister’s family, forces one to conclude that such a decision is not only contrary to the Government’s best interest but also has the appearance of a conflict of interest facilitated by Chief Executive Officers and approved by Ministers of Government nominated by the Prime Minister.”

The PSU release goes on to state that public officers and other workers of Belize have invested $85 million dollars in Belize Telemedia Limited via the Social Security Board. It further points out that the switchover to Smart will result in a loss of revenue for the national company, and will jeopardize SSB’s investment, which amounts to an attack on the people and government of Belize.

The release states, “The PSU, therefore, calls for an end to these imprudent and non-nationalistic decisions against our national assets. This continuous self-inflicting and State endorsed economic attacks on the resources and investment of the government further threaten the financial stability of one of our national assets.”