Andre Perez: Too Early to Call on Mira Payments
Cabinet Minister Andre Perez is weighing in on the growing controversy over Defense Ministry payments tied to relatives of Belmopan Representative Oscar Mira but says it’s too early to draw conclusions. Perez stressed that the Prime Minister’s audit must run its course before any findings are confirmed. The issue gained traction after leaked Smart Stream records revealed hundreds of thousands of dollars processed in payments just under the ten-thousand-dollar oversight threshold. Perez says his ministry is now being pressed on how it ensures transparency and prevents situations like this from slipping through the cracks.
Andre Perez
Andre Perez, Cabinet Minister
“These are all allegations. I want to say that let’s wait for the audit to take over, and the Prime Minister has spoken. All right? So I don’t think I want to produce or say anything or opinions. The Prime Minister has spoken. There are allegations made, and let the audit flow, and after that, we’re able to comment.”
Reporter
“Does your ministry engage in split payments?”
Andre Perez
“Listen, we have a very small ministry, and we don’t engage in these things, no payments. We don’t make those payments as far as I’m concerned. Actually, I want to tell you something. I have done the check with my office and checked with my CEOs, everything, and they say we’re fine. And I said, Thank you very much,” because I’m telling you my ministry, I speak for my ministry. We’re transparent, and we’re not engaging anything on spec payments as such.”
Reporter
“This was the first time you were hearing that was possible?”
Andre Perez
“Actually, I’ve never really got into what are the line items and what is the pay through Smart Stream. I don’t know the details, so I don’t want to comment on payments as such. I have no idea what it is.”
Perez revealed that he had reached out to Mira following his leave of absence but did not disclose further details.
Perez Says $10,000 Payment Limit May Need Adjustment
As auditors take a closer look at payments inside the Ministry of Defense, the ripple effect is already being felt across government, raising pointed questions about how other ministers keep tabs on public spending. The probe comes after Financial Secretary Joseph Waight openly admitted that there are gaps in the system, leaving investigators to sort out whether any rules were broken. With that in mind, we pressed Cabinet Minister Andre Perez today on a critical issue: is the current system, allowing payments of up to ten thousand dollars without ministerial sign-off, opening the door to potential misuse? Here’s what he had to say.
Andre Perez
Andre Perez, Cabinet Minister
“I can speak from a business standpoint. I’m a businessman. I can speak to you that when it comes to managing a company or a corporation, you have to have in place whereby if your company is growing. Let me tell you something. The government the national budget is growing, right? We have more payments to make. The Coast Guard has grown. The BDF has grown. My ministry is growing as well. So for me as a businessman, if I’m going to be engaging my CEO, can I make any decisions on the threshold of ten thousand dollars, and the everything has to go through us, and the payments are getting bigger, the increase of cost on just about everything, then it’s time for us to look at maybe the increase of the threshold from ten to fifteen, twenty thousand dollars. Because it might very well turn out that these things, payments need to be made. You full a gas tank right now.”
Reporter
“There’s been abuse though, Minister.”
Andre Perez
“No. No. You’re asking for a comment. You have a comment. I’m saying from a business standpoint, if there needs to be an increase. I’m not saying going to fifty thousand, but again, the CEO’s to make the decisions. As it relates to abuse, that is speculation. But I’m saying as a businessperson, ten thousand is low. You full a gas tank now, you used to full a hundred dollars for a gas tank, you full a gas tank for three hundred dollars now. So if you authorize somebody with a vehicle that you couldn’t put hundred dollars, you are forcing that person to put quarter tank or half tank. As it relates to abuse and so let’s not get into comments for that are speculations.”
Reporter
“But as a businessperson, if you see accounting where you have those costs, that’s for double invoices, won’t that raise concerns for you?”
Andre Perez
“Again that what you’re saying, I’m just saying what is in the news. So I can’t answer that. I am saying that perhaps that needs to be looked at. If I am a businessman looking at more payments need to be made, they’re bringing to my attention, then we have to look at that a different way.”
Perez refrained from further comments until the audit has concluded.
Perez Rejects Nepotism Allegations Over Grocery Bag Program
A social media firestorm is putting Belize Rural South Area Representative Andre Perez on the defensive this week, as allegations of nepotism swirl around a government grocery assistance program. The claims suggest that relief funds were funneled toward a San Pedro store tied to his family, with coupons allegedly handled by a close relative. But Perez isn’t backing down. He’s flatly rejecting the accusation and insisting the initiative casts a much wider net, supporting multiple small businesses while getting essential food items to families who need them most.
Andre Perez
Andre Perez, Area Representative, Belize Rural South
“I understand that as an elected official, you will be subjected to public scrutiny. That is something that I have no problem with that, right? And at all times as far as I as the area rep, I will always engage in what is accountable. Transparency is the name of the game. And I can be criticized, I can be attacked, no problem. I can. But when you engage in malicious accusations, allegations, and involve family members who are really innocent is unfair. And I call out for this type of malicious allegations coming out from the UDP is uncalled for. But I’ll answer you in this way here, let’s make clarifications because these are allegations, and it’s okay, and it’s important for me to give off the information and clarify it, but there has to be clarification. First of all, it’s more than a store. We have several stores in what we provide the country program, and that is a store that gets the smaller part of it, right? And that has been done for the past five months. There are times when a month passes and no payment has been given, and that store continues to provide. They don’t deny it. So that is important. That grocery bag program provides to the needy, to the single mother, to somebody that is medical in need, someone who is unemployed, have children. Those are the people we cater to. So to say that it’s a big figure or something, It is never enough. So I just want to clarify that, and it is unfair. But that is a store that is at the heart of the town and provides the basics and strict rules and regulations that is all just food. They have the coupons do not give any soft drinks, no cigarettes, no liquor. It’s all basics. You can’t get that in a big supermarket. The prices are even higher. And that’s why we go to these small stores and one in the south, and it’s strategic.”
Perez says his office doesn’t handle funds directly. Stores must first reconcile with his team, which then reports to the government and if the numbers don’t add up, payments stop.
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.