Parliamentarians Spar Over Road Conditions in the North

In a heated exchange during the House of Representatives session on Friday, Corozal North Area Representative Hugo Patt criticised the government’s road construction efforts in northern Belize, particularly the deteriorating quality of the climate-resilient Remate Road. Patt questioned the effectiveness of current designs, arguing that roads meant to withstand adverse weather are still quickly falling apart.

Patt said, “We hear from some members on the government side that it is because we’re getting excessive rains, and last year we got a long drought, and that these are the kinds of weather conditions that are affecting the quality of the roads.” He added, “We’re getting additional funding precisely to build roads that are climate resilient but we are not seeing the results on the road.”

Patt’s criticism was met with strong rebuttals from Minister of Infrastructure Development, Julius Espat. Espat stated that consultations with both local engineers and foreign consultants, including Polytechnica, had found no significant defects on the Remate Road. “This gentleman comes to the House and makes accusations, and he is given the opportunity to see, to analyse, to discuss with the foreign consultants, to discuss with the local engineers, and he has refused to do so,” Espat said.

He added, “If you have a genuine concern based on facts, bring it to us, and we will address it,” Espat said.