Julius Espat Submits 13th Integrity Report  

On Tuesday, Cayo South Area Representative Julius Espat submitted his thirteenth integrity report. By being open about his finances, Espat builds trust with the public. When elected officials declare their assets, it shows they’re not using their position for personal gain. This kind of transparency boosts the integrity of public service and strengthens confidence in government institutions. It’s crucial for holding officials accountable and can deter corruption by making it harder to hide illicit gains and spotting any unexplained wealth or conflicts of interest.

 

On the phone: Julius Espat, Area Representative, Cayo South

“I think it’s extremely important.  It’s to show transparency and accountability in your personal assets.  The law is designed that any individual that is elected and that goes for the mayors and all the area reps.  They should declare their assets from the first year that they have been elected.  The law also says that when you stop from being elected, you still have to submit the declaration for five years more.  It’s part of accountability, it’s part of good governance and I think it’s something that’s healthy for democracy and I would strongly recommend that every elected official do so.  I have done so from the first day that I was elected.  This week was my thirteenth declaration, and there are penalties.  If I’m not mistaken, there are penalties of a hundred dollars a day from the day that you haven’t handed in your last declaration.  I don’t believe anybody has been charged with it, but that’s the law.  As far as I remember, the United Democratic Party, under the leadership of Prime Minister Barrow, had cleared all area reps from declaring up to 2016.  We had that vigorous debate in the house as to why he did that, but it was done.  As far as I understand, it is from 2016 to date that is pending.”