Ruth Shoman is Elected as New National President of B.N.T.U.
Ruth Shoman
Ruth Shoman is the new president for the Belize National Teachers Union. The president-elect was chosen during the fifty-third national convention under the theme, “B.N.T.U. – One Union, One Mission, One Voice.” The former national secretary campaigned against two other candidates. Six hundred and sixty-two votes were cast by the teachers to determine the next national executive council for the firebrand union. Counting began after six and the results were announced around eight p.m. on Thursday. This was followed by Shoman’s statement as president-elect of the B.N.T.U.
Iona Ramirez
Iona Ramirez, Election Chief, B.N.T.U. Convention
“Efashina Efeyemi two hundred and twenty-six votes, Ray Martinez, seventy-one votes; Ruth Shoman three hundred fifty-six votes, which makes Ruth Shoman our president.”
Ruth Shoman
Ruth Shoman, President-Elect, B.N.T.U.
“My platform came from the idea of education. We are educators and the times have changed. I think the pandemic taught the whole world a lesson and after every pandemic, things change. B.N.T.U. as well, our past leaders have set a very solid foundation for us and it is up to us now to continue building on that. And one of the most important areas for me is to train, have succession plans, educate so that we are properly equipped when we need to address those who we negotiate with. That’s one area that I was coming with. Another is to build a network, build relationships. We should not be adversaries with those who we need to work with, but we need to work together for the benefit of the membership who we represent so that we can get the best possible outcomes out of these negotiations. For me those are very important areas that I spoke to my teachers about and I guess they understood where I was coming from.”
Jorge Mejia was elected as the vice president of the national executive with four hundred and two votes. Replacing Shoman as national secretary was Bear Rivas who got three hundred and forty-one votes.
