New Amendments Target Ombudsman, Contractor General
At today’s House sitting, government moved to tighten the rules around two major oversight posts, the Ombudsman and the Contractor General. The new amendments aim to clear up exactly how these officials should be compensated, an issue that resurfaced after last year’s controversy over the non-renewal of Retired Major Gilbert Swaso’s contract as Ombudsman. Under Belizean law, the Ombudsman’s salary must be no less than that of a Supreme Court judge, but Prime Minister Briceño says vague wording has created confusion. He argues the changes will remove uncertainty and set out clearer standards for how these constitutional officers are paid going forward.
Prime Minister John Briceño
“What has taken place in practice is that the National Assembly, by resolution, approves the salary of the person appointed Ombudsman or Contractor General with no strict reference to the renumeration of a High Court Judge being made. A contract is simply settled with the office holder based on qualifications, experience, and other factors that are naturally considered in finalizing a contract. And as said Madam Speaker, this has been a practice going back to the appointment of the first office holders. Further, Madam Speaker, the respected institutional academy, Dr. Francis Alexis in his text “Changing Caribbean Constitution explains that while strict professional are set by the Constitution for judges, the same cannot be said for Ombudsman. Particularly because broader qualifications are appropriate for such post, and the same can be said for the Contractor General. Therefore, there is no sound policy reason why the renumeration of the Ombudsman or the Contractor General should be referenced to that of a judge of the High Court. This is why we are introducing these amendments.”
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