Maya Center residents demand accountability and transparency from their water board

Things got testy in the Stann Creek village of Maya Center this morning. The centre of the dispute? Residents wanted the current water board chairman, Benedicto Choc, to stay on the job. It was during his tenure that the water board saw significant savings. However, the village council changed, and they want to appoint a new water board chairman in the person of Orlando Bolon. Bolon is the brother of the village council chairman. It appears that not only did the residents want Choc to stay on, but they were also demanding transparency and accountability, which had not been afforded to them prior to Choc’s tenure. They are also demanding full disclosure of revenue collection and spending by the water board. Because these issues were raised, it delayed the transfer of power from Choc to Bolon this morning. Thanks to our colleagues at Southern Belize Media, who streamed the two-hour standoff on Facebook, we heard from both sides of the issues.

It appears that members of the community want a legal process to settle this dispute, and we’ll keep following the situation for you.