BDF Commander Dismisses Vehicle Misuse Claim
Concerns have surfaced about whether a Belize Defense Force vehicle is being used for personal errands down south, but the BDF’s top brass says that’s simply not the case. What looked like a potential misuse of military resources, according to Commander Brigadier General Anthony Velasquez, is actually an officer doing exactly what his job requires. Velasquez says the officer is on call around the clock and is supposed to have the vehicle with him at all times so he can move quickly when duty calls. As for the officer’s involvement with a local school board, the issue that sparked the complaint, the commander says that’s voluntary service allowed under BDF rules. He’s dismissing the allegations as nothing more than mischief aimed at stirring trouble.
Anthony Velasquez
Brigadier General Anthony Velasquez, Commander, Belize Defense Force
“The commanding officers they have a vehicle assigned to them for them to be able to move whenever the BDF calls on them. So, that certain commanding officer is certainly within the rules of the BDF to have that vehicle with him 24/7 because he has to react. He is in charge of four hundred soldiers within the Toledo district, and he has to move from point a to b at a moment’s notice, day and night. So that vehicle is assigned to him 24/7. The fact that he is a member of a board of some education institution is within our regulation, because he is a volunteer member of that board. He is not making any personal profit. He is volunteering his time and the BDF has always been active in community service throughout this country. So there is no issue so far with that. So I will put that thing that came out as mischief.”
The BDF says this is simply a case of an officer doing his job, not misusing military resources, despite the concerns raised.
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