Briceño’s Ministry Threatens Public Servants- When Will PSU Stand Up for Members?

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John Briceño
Gerald Henry

By Shane D. Williams
Smack in the middle of an effective retrenchment, the Briceño administration has launched a preemptive strike to dissuade public officers from shedding light on all the terminations that are taking place, and bloated contracts being issued out to relatives and cronies of ministers of government. In a memo dated March 30, 2021, the Prime Minister’s Financial Secretary warned public officers that if they make copies of or publicize any documents from government they “will be sanctioned”.
This threat is part of a pattern of behavior. As we have outlined in previous articles, the public service is under sustained attack by the Briceño administration as they attempt to whip public servants into submission or/and subservience. Ministers and appointed cronies have verbally and administratively abused public servants at all level of government. One of the most high profile abuse has been the benching of Dr. Marvin Manzanero who was stripped of his vehicle, office and title before being placed on administrative leave, and accused of causing the deaths of fellow Belizeans. Other public servants have been locked out of their own offices, and many have been transferred far from their families for questioning the authority of ministers and recently hired political officers.
The unions have been engaged with government negotiators while all this abuse is taking place. Public servants across the length and breadth of this country have all been asking one single question: “When will the Public Service Union stand up for public officers?”