The People’s United Party has been claiming that it will be implementing a homegrown plan to take the country out of the economic problems that it currently is in. And while they keep on claiming that, Belizeans have been facing the hardest of times that they have ever faced in an era. This is because they have been implementing an IMF solution to the problem. While they would never admit to this, an IMF representative has confirmed as much. In an interview with Love FM on Monday, June 14th, Jaime Guajardo, the Western Hemisphere Department Deputy Chief, explained that, “the authorities told us that they are not considering an IMF program at this juncture and I think the Prime Minister has been very open about that when he has addressed the press in Belize. Instead, they want to do what the government has called home grow recovery plan which has basically the same pillars that we discussed during the article 4 consultations.”
So the plan is actually an IMF solution! Guajardo went on to state that, “the government has already moved by introducing significantly to consolidation measures in the budget for the fiscal year 2022, the reduction in public sector wages is one of their measures and the other one is the reduction of purchases in goods and services.” He carried on to state that, “if there was a program in Belize, I don’t think it would be very different from what the government is proposing in their recovery plan.”
While the PUP is saying they have a homegrown policy, the reality is that because the decision-makers in government are so dense and have no alternative plan, they have to take on whatever the IMF is proposing and they are mercilessly imposing it. It appears that the IMF is very much happy with what the Briceno Government is doing and as that is taking place, the general Belizean public is bearing the brunt of it all. Public officers in particular are taking such a hit that many are unable to meet everyday expenses. The IMF is happy and Belizeans are sad.
