On August 6, 2026, Lead Opposition Senator and United Democratic Party (UDP) figure Patrick Faber opened up about his decision to lead a mass walkout of Belize’s Senate earlier this week, defending the controversial protest as a necessary act to alert the public to what he calls a deceptive power play by the ruling government connected to a proposed deal at Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL).
Faber made clear that he carries no regrets over the walkout, even though the Senate was scheduled to take up high-stakes legislative business, including debate on the regional CARICOM Freedom of Movement Bill. He acknowledged that the bill, which the opposition had already held an in-depth briefing on with the deputy director general of foreign trade and raised multiple concerns about, is a critical piece of policy that the opposition will share its full views on at a later date. But in his assessment, the controversy unfolding inside BTL’s boardroom demanded immediate, unmissable action.
“What the government and BTL leadership tried to do was push this questionable deal through under the radar, while asking us to just go about routine business as if nothing was wrong,” Faber explained in an interview with News Five. “This isn’t just an opposition fight – independent senators, the local business community, national church leaders, and broad swathes of the public have all raised alarm that this deal cannot move forward without full, transparent accountability processes in place. They were trying to ram this through against the will of most Belizeans, and we couldn’t stay silent.”
UDP Leader Tracy Panton echoed Faber’s comments, praising the walkout as a historic moment of cross-opposition and independent collaboration that sent an unmistakeable warning to the ruling Briceño administration. “This was a strong, clear message that we will not sit idly by and let the government do whatever it wants in this country,” Panton said. “We are incredibly proud of our lead senator for leading this charge, and for pulling together this level of unified opposition that we haven’t seen before in Belize’s legislative history.”
Beyond defending the walkout, Faber criticized independent Church Senator Louis Wade, who has publicly stated his opposition to the proposed BTL acquisition but chose not to join the walkout – a decision Faber says wasted a critical chance to derail the Senate session entirely. Had Wade joined the opposition’s three senators and the three other independent senators who walked out, Faber argues, the Senate would have lost its required quorum and been forced to adjourn immediately, amplifying the opposition’s message exponentially.
“Senator Wade has already held a full press conference to lay out how strongly he opposes this deal, and it even impacts his own business interests,” Faber noted. “I understand he serves in a formal senatorial capacity rather than as a private citizen, but given the clear public opposition of the national church to this deal, he should have stood with the rest of us and made this powerful statement. If he had joined the walkout, there would not have been enough senators present to hit quorum, and the meeting would have had to be suspended. That is a tactic we will absolutely consider going forward, when the government pushes forward with irregular, unethical business that doesn’t follow proper procedure.”
In the wake of the walkout, the remaining senators proceeded with the scheduled session, passing several bills in the absence of the opposition and three independent senators. The original report is a transcript of an evening television broadcast, with Kriol-language remarks converted to standard spelling for the online publication.