Belize is facing an approaching tropical storm, possibly a small hurricane, and one cannot ignore the cosmic correlation of recent events involving Mason. Mason was introduced to the Belizean public as an expert or specialist offering services to aid the National Emergency Management Organization. Two weeks after the murder of Llewelyn Lucas, there have been a plethora of fallouts, accusations, restructuring, investigations with even more pending. In some poetic sense, Belize system is definitely under National Emergency Management Re-Organization of government – courtesy of William Mason.

Mason’s identity is still unknown. He has a Belize birth certificate with the name William Mason and Guyanese passport with the name Ramesh Oulette. My Guyanese friend informs me that Oulette is not a traditional Guyanese last name. A little bit of research on the name Oulette indicates that the name is French Canadian in origin. It is possible his mother could have been French Canadian but Mason’s true identity is essential in getting to the bottom of this mystery.

Danny Mason’s true identity is extremely important because he may be linked to other crimes in Belize and worldwide. The aliases circulating are Danny Mason, Thomas Tharakan, Jagdeep Chahal (picture does not look like him), Raj Oulette, Ted Oulette, Danny Ferguson, Danny Oulette, Ramesh Oulette and Ramesh Singh. As I browsed RipOff Report online comments, I found it interesting that several people in Belize, as early as 2014, were reporting his presence in Belize. There are reports of Mason in South Africa, Thailand and South America scamming people, using similar tactics he did in Belize, befriending unsuspecting victims and stealing their money. A friend confided that Mason, known to her as Danny Oulette, attempted to extort her aunt. Her aunt had to get the police involved and remove “Danny” from her land. She claims this was a few years ago and they thought he had left Belize and headed back to Canada.

This case has exposed a dangerous weakness in Belize’s identification system (maybe Guyana and Canada too) and a flagrant loophole indicating a lack of necessary checks and balances. Mason operated unfettered because he flashed money, made sizeable donations, was able to obtain fraudulent identity documents, gun licenses, property, status and access. All this with the admitted knowledge of the then Minister of Police and key police officers. The aftershock of this has yet to quantified. Mason’s operations have called every Belizean identity into question. He exposed Belize as a place that facilitates international criminals for the right price and with the knowledge of relevant authorities. The case highlights the ease to wash illicit funds through donations and investments; a revelation that could have dire consequences for Belize. Belize could face international repercussions such as de-risking and heightened security for all Belizean citizens worldwide. Whether or not the P.M. realizes this, there will be keen international monitoring of this case especially since Mason littered the world with victims. Mason could be wanted for serious crimes worldwide, even other murders. How Belize proceeds handling this will be vital.

The Prime Minister has done the necessary initial steps to cure some of the problems but there are so much more to be done. The PM must create the necessary legal checks and balances to ensure this level of abuse never again occurs. Mason may be the most sensational case, but criminals have entered and abused Belize’s lax system too many times. The PM has elevated credible people in the right places, but I urge him to also formulate a bipartisan team to assist those new leaders to correct the deficiencies in the system.

The P.M. must recognize that he represents the last vestiges of politicians whose personal service and reputation is the key to their political life. The new breed of politicians enters public life for personal and financial enrichment. They lack service and empathy for their country and people, they lack purpose and they lack a moral compass. The laws in Belize that originated from the days when handshakes sealed deals, does not align with this new era of politicians and criminals.

Currently, the Belizean people turn to Hon. Dean Barrow to solve problems, to hold his cabinet accountable and to fight on behalf of the nation of Belize. That is a difficult task to ask any one person to do. The current system does not create perpetuity and it is not conducive to promote proper development and not responsive to identify, analyze and eradicate corruption. I have heard many people echo that their support of UDP begins and ends with the current Prime Minister. What will happen to Belize when he retires? Belize system seemed to be designed for strong and principled leadership. A leadership game of Russian Roulette.

The electorate has grown in sophistication and knowledge due to the unprecedented access to information. People are understanding that leadership defines their identity, success, and generation’s future and they are growing weary of abuse. To forge a prosperous future for our children and children’s children, the laws and constitution must reflect a system of limits and accountability.

And Belize this is not over yet. It has been reported that a prominent CEO of the Government of Belize and former Director of immigration was denied access to the United States and her visa cancelled. Countries battling terrorism are likely very concerned about their own vulnerability when criminals can mask their identities in countries like Belize, Canada and Guyana. A red flag has been raised warning of a storm brewing.