BELIZE-Embattled minister to repay salary given to him since going on “unpaid leave”

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BELMOPAN, Belize, CMC -Prime Minister John Briceño says efforts are being made to get embattled Minister of Blue Economy and Civil Aviation, Andre Perez, to repay the salaries he has received since taking “unpaid” leave from the Cabinet.

Last month, Prime Minister Briceño accepted a request from Perez for a leave of absence from the Cabinet that would facilitate the probe into allegations that had been made against him. A government statement said, “After the investigation, the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs will advise the Prime Minister on whether there has been any actionable wrongdoing.”

The Rural South Area representative is embroiled in a scandal involving a female attorney who has made allegations against the minister. Media reports said a demand is being made for a criminal investigation to be launched, given the graphic descriptions shared by the attorney in her account of what purportedly took place involving Perez.

But speaking to reporters, Prime Minister Briceño said he had become aware of salaries being paid to the minister who had “ asked for a leave of absence,” adding, “It is an unpaid leave of absence.

“He is not a Cabinet minister, so how can he get his salary? Let’s start on the basis. And, it seems the Cabinet Secretary did forget to pass it down the chain of command that he should not get that salary. We are hoping now the Cab Sec will speak with him, and he will have to refund that first part that he got because he was not a minister of Cabinet,” Briceño added.

Cabinet Secretary Stuart Leslie said he failed to inform the Finance Officer to cut Perez’s pay.

Asked by reporters whether Perez is still the representative for Belize Rural South and is being paid as a parliamentarian, Prime Minister Briceño replied: “Of course, he is still an area rep, and he gets the constituency development fund and he is still the representative for Belize Rural South.”

Last week, Attorney General Anthony Sylvestre said the investigation is ongoing and will be done “promptly.

“Unfortunately, I will not be able to provide an update; suffice to say that it is ongoing,” he said, adding, “but we do appreciate that it has to be done promptly. So, that is taken into account, and it will be done within a timely manner,” he added.

Asked how he felt about the fact that there is no police report against Perez, Prime Minister Briceño replied, “that is the point.”

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