PM Says Doctor Manza Mismanaged COVID in Belize

As we have been reporting, Doctor Marvin Manzanero was terminated last Friday as Director of Health Services under the Ministry of Health and Wellness. The writings were on the wall for almost a year. With the D.H.S. post abolished, Doctor Manzanero was handed his walking papers and now the ministry is seeking applicants for two new director posts. Today, Prime Minister John Briceño slammed Doctor Manzanero’s handling of the COVID-19 response for the country. Here’s what he said.

Prime Minister John Briceño

John Briceño

“It’s unfortunate that Doctor Manza refused the offers that we were offering to him. I maintain that he was a disaster in managing the COVID crisis, but that has passed. I wish him well. We were trying to put him in other areas within the ministry, in other postings, and he refused all. But part of PlanBelize was to be able to break up the post of the Director of Health Services; it has become way too big for one person to manage. That was not done because of Doctor Manza; it was done because of a plan that we have that we can separate the public health services that we offer to our people and the hospital services. So we felt that it was necessary from before. It is a part of PlanBelize that we enacted. So I wish Doctor Manza well. I am sure he can open his private practice or private clinic, but the ministry moves on. Nobody is indispensible, including myself.”