PM Responds After Northern Caucus Backs Deal

Now, while the Prime Minister has been pushing back against opposition from the business community over the proposed BTL–Speednet acquisition, the debate has also sparked discussion within his own party. This week, the PUP Northern Caucus publicly backed the deal, raising questions about where Prime Minister John Briceño himself stands, and how he separates party politics from his role as head of government.

 

Prime Minister John Briceño

“There are two things, one is the Cabinet and one is the party. The Cabinet when we made the presentation and as I said all the questions were answered to our satisfaction, but we felt we wanted the process to playout. But we had an executive meeting, a party executive meeting and the National Executive felt strongly that we are taking a beating politically but we are not speaking out. The UDP has been speaking out. They made a presentation to the UDP and they have not made a presentation to the PUP. So they felt that it is best that the caucus ask for this presentation. We asked for the presentation and the northern caucus felt like when the presentation was done they need to make their position known and that is what happened.”

 

Reporter

“So do you then separate your role as party leader and a leader in the north from your role as prime minister and is it that you as a leader in the north supports it but you as the prime minister is indecisive?”

 

Prime Minister John Briceño

“How long it tek you to come up with that question? I am the leader of the PUP. I am a member of the northern caucus. I am not the leader of the northern caucus. I am the prime minister. I have to kind of separate my roles. I don’t know where you came with the idea that the Cabinet is indecisive. The Cabinet said we will wait. Let the process go through. We know where we want to go, but lets allow for there to be consultations. But the northern caucus when they met they decided that they wanted to take out a press release. That is a political issue. Cabinet is the government, so it is separate.”