Despite Mira Scandal, Cawich Confident in Belmopan PUP Victory

Amid growing scrutiny at City Hall, the political spotlight is starting to shift toward next year’s municipal race. The clock is ticking for P.U.P. hopefuls, with a June nineteenth deadline to apply and questions are being asked about whether Mayor Pablo Cawich will face a challenge. Adding to the intrigue is the controversy surrounding Belmopan Area Representative Oscar Mira. But Cawich isn’t convinced it will hurt him. He says the allegations won’t shape his political future, though he admits his push for stricter tax collection could be a tougher sell with voters.

 

Pablo Cawich, Mayor, Belmopan City

“My team and I have submitted our application, the full team. We are running again as a team.  The deadline you’re referring to is the PUP application deadline, so yes, we are running under the PUP banner again. We do all have intentions to continue serving the people of Belmopan.”

 

Shane Williams

“Are you concerned about the sustained allegations being made against the current Area Rep that that would affect you and your team in the upcoming municipals?”

 

Pablo Cawich

“I don’t believe it would affect us. Politics is politics and it is a very nasty game. I personally don’t like the negativity in politics. It is something that at our last campaign I had requested that some of the negativity that was being thrown around by residents for them to please hold it down because we don’t need that type of campaigning. We should campaign on merits. We took a more aggressive approach when it came to taxes. I know that is a problem that all citizens complain about. It is a reality that funds don’t take you as long away as they used to so any extra expense does hurt. But we also have a responsibility as the municipal administration to try and ensure that everyone is compliant so that we can invest the funds into the city.”

 

The Mayor says compliance has improved significantly during his term due to a higher target being set and pursued in the municipality.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

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