Susana Vanzie Named Interim CEO of National Bus Company

Tonight, the newly launched National Bus Company is putting its first pieces in place, starting with the appointment of Susanna Vanzie as interim CEO. Vanzie, best known as the co‑founder of Floralia, one of Belize’s most modern bus services, will lead the company through a three‑month probation period before the board decides whether she stays on permanently. Floralia now joins several top operators under the new national system, and Minister of Transport, Dr. Louis Zabaneh, breaks down who else is helping steer the company forward.

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transportation

“We had on Friday last the general meeting that selected the board. So as the chairperson, we have miss an Anna Loague, who is a director in our ministry. We have another director that we chose miss Jeaneane Neil. We have Senator Elena Smith was chosen to the board. We also have Miss Miriam Paz, an educator who works with the Ministry of Education. Then the operators, we have Mr. Jamie Williams from James. We have Mr. Sergio Chuc from West Line, and then we have Mr. Codd from the north. And Mr. Codd was chosen by the smaller operators. So we have a seven member board in place now.”

 

Reporter

“Has the CEO been chosen or the board will now move to higher.”

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh

“Because we started operation yesterday, there’s a three month management team that is in a probationary period. The board selected miss Susanna Vanzie from Floralia as the CEO. So she’s running the company right now as we speak. And then they are in the process now of hiring our accounting staff, our HR staff, our operation staff, all of that is being put in place as we speak.”

 

Reporter

“Is it that Ms. Vanzie, if she passes that promotional period, will remain permanently?”

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh

“Yes. If the board so deems that her performance has been up the standard that’s for them to decide. Yes.”

 

Will Bus Terminal Employees Lose Their Jobs?

 

Amid government fanfare surrounding the launch of the National Bus Company, unease is growing inside the public service. Terminal employees say they’ve been bracing for possible job losses, following reports that some were urged to resign, claims that have alarmed the Public Service Union. PSU President Dean Flowers argues the message has stirred wider concern across the labor movement, even as the Ministry of Transport denies issuing any such directive and insists the transition will strictly follow the law. Against that backdrop, Transport Minister Dr. Louis Zabaneh outlined what security terminal staff can expect as operators shift into the NBC, while also confirming the new company’s leadership, including the appointment of interim CEO Susana Vanzie and the seven-member board now steering the national system.

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transportation

“I think sadly there was some miscommunication at the beginning or poor communication at the very onset, which was earlier last week we met with PSU, we met with the president of the PSU, the president of the NTUCB. We had a very good conversation. They expressed their concerns. They want to ensure of course, that the rights of these employees that are now government employees, even though they’re open vote workers, that they have rights. And certainly we agree. So in addition to the first round of communication that we had with them, myself and CEO personally went and met with all of them over the weekend and we explained to them how the transition would work, that we have this six-month period. And that during that period they will have enough time to decide if they want to continue as employees working now for the National Bus Company or they want to remain in government service. So they had the opportunity to ask those questions and I believe now that they’re all very clear and very comfortable and in fact to see the National Bus Company as an opportunity for us to elevate ourselves, that we have to see ourselves doing more than we have done in the past, and that this can only be done with people. And that once we create the environment for our people, that is that respects them, that then we will be able to get great productivity from our employees. They will have to apply because it’s a new company and they will have to go and understand clearly their terms of reference where training is required. They will need to go through that kind of training. And so that’s why we need time for them to understand what the National Bus Company is gonna be requiring of them. And I believe that once they see that the environment is there in their best interest. That they will be able to make a song decision.”

 

Any Incentives for Private Bus Operators?

 

Last May, before the National Bus Service rolled out, private operators warned that the new company created an unfair playing field and pressed government to extend the same duty breaks and fuel tax relief promised to the NBC. Now, with the national system up and running, Transport Minister Dr. Louis Zabaneh is addressing whether those operators will receive the incentives they’ve long demanded, even as they continue to operate outside the government‑backed company.

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transportation

“They had the option to be a part of it and receive any kinds of benefits from having a larger company that can purchase newer buses because it’s a bigger company. Having whatever incentives that make the company more productive, they had that freedom. So if they decided not to do it, it’s because for whatever reason, they may feel that they can have equal service as the National Bus Company. And we wish for them to be able to do that. So once they can do that and abide by the regulations, then good for them. But we will ensure that those requirements that they have on their own service permits are fully enforced.”

 

Reporter

“And of course, gas incentives, they’re talking about the potential getting rid of GST off gas.”

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh

“No, not even a national bus company will get that. So I don’t believe that that’s possible.”

 

Transport Department to Crack Down in Standees

 

Anyone who rides Belize’s buses knows the problem: overcrowded runs with standees squeezed in as drivers speed along the highways. It’s unsafe, uncomfortable, but often the only way to get where you’re going. Now, Transport Minister Dr. Louis Zabaneh says the government is tightening the rules on standees, and stricter limits are coming to buses nationwide. He explains how the ministry plans to finally tackle the issue.

 

Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transportation

“We are looking at that and that that’s, again, is where we have corrections to be made from the past. What has happened, and I’ll be very blunt about it, is that standees is a place where you have people,  the conductors who have a lot of cash in their pocket. And so they have been racing to pick up people along the road because that means that they control more of the cash. Everybody knows that’s across the country. We are very hopeful that this is an opportunity for people now, along with better systems of control. We are now, we don’t need to have these buses ram jam with people. And in fact, it’s illegal to have standees. We can then place another bus at those times when we need extra buses. And then of course, there are others too that you might not be observing where you have two or three buses at the same time, but each bus is maybe just a third full. And so that’s where you can probably eliminate one bus and move it to a spot where you have the standee. But in the previous setting, there was no incentive for any operator to really put a second bus. If they could have all the standees on one bus. And so these are the things now that we can improve for the best interest of our commuters.”

 

Minister Zabaneh says those tighter rules aim to stop the rush for standees and finally put safer, better‑managed bus runs back in the commuters’ best interest.

 

 

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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