BELIZE: ALLEGATIONS MADE AGAINST FORMER BELIZE CITY

UNCLAS BELIZE 000282

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR WHA/CEN - JASON MACK

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR SOCI EFIN BH
SUBJECT: BELIZE: ALLEGATIONS MADE AGAINST FORMER BELIZE CITY
MAYOR

REF: BELIZE 211

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SUMMARY AND ANALYSIS
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1. (U) The recently replaced mayor of Belize City faces
allegations of financial improprieties during his final days
in office. Separately, the new mayor of Orange Walk Town
has announced a financial audit to clean house. The
allegations of corruption come as no surprise in the wake of
recent municipal elections in which Zenaida Moya and other
United Democratic Party (UDP) candidates were swept to power
by an electorate weary of the series of financial scandals
which have dogged the ruling People's United Party (PUP) in
recent years at both the national and local levels (REFTEL).
Prime Minister Said Musa must call national elections no
later than 2008; whether his PUP government can rebuild the
electorate's confidence by then is an open question. End
Summary and Analysis.


2. (SBU) Former Belize City Mayor William David Fonseca,
the younger brother of GOB Minister of Home Affairs Ralph
Fonseca, reportedly has bounced 12 checks worth
approximately BZ$30,000 to the Belize City Council between
October 2005 and February 2006. Fonseca returned nearly
BZ$30,000 to the city on Friday March 17. Additionally,
local media have reported that Fonseca received an estimated
BZ$237,000 in "salary advances and personal loans" and
BZ$155,000 from "what was listed as a social assistance
program."


3. (SBU) Recently elected Mayor Zenaida Moya filed a
complaint with police on Monday, March 20. Local print
media noted that "Moya said that the [City] Council's legal
counsel advised them to file a report directly to police,
rather than submitting it to the DPP's office." Bouncing
checks is a criminal offense in Belize; however, sources
have indicated to the Embassy that police may drop charges
against Fonseca because of a "lack of evidence." If the
charges are dropped, Embassy sources report that Moya and
her council may file a civil suit.

4. (SBU) Post ConOff has contacted INL/C/CP concerning the
possible revocation of Fonseca's visa and/or beginning the
212(f) process based on the following March 14 interview
between David Fonseca and Channel Seven News in Belize:
Interviewer: "Mayor Moya has said that it is a criminal act,
in her opinion, particularly the cashing of a bounced check,
the day before elections when they [sic] had been nine other
bounced checks before. What's your response to that?"
Fonseca: "Probably it is, probably it is a criminal act
yeah."
Interviewer: "And you are responsible for that?"
Fonseca: "Yeah it's me."
Interviewer: "So you are guilty of a criminal charge?"
Fonseca: "I am not saying so, I said probably."
Interviewer: "Well either you are or you aren't."
Fonseca: "Well like I said because the funds were used for a
particular purpose, not for me, I don't consider anything
that I have done criminal. My only crime that I have
committed, as far as I am concerned, is trying to help too
many people. That is the only crime that I've committed,
trying to help too many people."


5. (U) Separately, according to a March 21 newscast on
Belize's Channel Five, new UDP Mayor in Orange Walk Town
Ravel Gonzalez stated "I informed the public that we're
doing a financial auditing. And what we have found so far is
that the council had decided to pay themselves thirty
percent severance pay . . . the amounts that they were paid
and it has amounted so far to approximately seventy thousand
dollars that were paid out to the Mayor, the previous mayor
and councillors and now we are finding legal help. And if it
does end up being illegal, which we believe it is, then we
definitely will take this to court." According to the
Channel Five newscast, Mayor Gonzalez "has yet to officially
inform the former Mayor and councillors of their
investigation and projected course of legal action."

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