Category: Politics

The United Democratic Party remains an organization in shambles and despite numerous attempts to convene an urgent meeting to get the house in order, those repeated calls have all gone unanswered.  Earlier today, a group calling itself Alliance for Democracy issued a press release in which it stated that a reminder has been sent to Chairman Mike Peyrefitte regarding an N.P.C. that was petitioned for last Monday.  This afternoon, we sat down with Albert Area Representative Tracy Panton who provided an update on the latest developments within the embattled U.D.P.

 

Tracy Panton, Area Representative, Albert

“I think the one we sent earlier today would have been just about five letters.  We’re trying to follow and adhere to the constitution of the party. We have been champions of following the constitution, it is the most important institution that the United Democratic Party has to its disposal.  And so we have written to him yet again asking for an urgent meeting of the National Party Council.  We have attached the requisite signatures that are required by the constitution for this meeting to be convened and we are hoping that he will respond.  We had called for one earlier in June and it took us seven weeks for a meeting to convene and then that fell apart.  So we are trying again.  We feel it’s important that there be a discussion on what’s going on internally and trying to find a way how we can move forward in the interest of the party and more importantly in the interest of having a robust opposition for the country.”

 

Isani Cayetano

“Following the failed N.P.C., you have written to the chairman on several other occasions and we’re not certain whether those letters were responded to.  I think of the letter that had been written in respect of the Andrew Bradley removal from Caribbean Shores.  Speak to us in that context, if you don’t mind.”

 

Tracy Panton

“There has been no response to that letter.  I have been removed arbitrarily and unilaterally from all the communication mechanisms of the party, so I don’t know if they’ve had any discussions in those mechanisms since I’ve been removed, so I can’t speak to that.  But there has been no formal response to my letter to the chairman on Andrew Bradley.  I understand that the post has been declared vacant and an ad is out.  A deadline for August sixteenth [has been set] for applications to be sent into the party to fill that post.  Our concern is that these decisions are not being done in alignment or in accordance with the constitution of the party.”

Viewers would recall that the failed National Party Council that had been scheduled for August third saw the U.D.P. chairman walking out of the meeting after declaring the N.P.C. suspended.  But is the presiding officer of the U.D.P. being partial to the leadership of the party and not budging to the will of its supporters?

 

Isani Cayetano

“What do you say to the position that the party leader has taken which says that in August of last year, during the last N.P.C. it was a near unanimous position that the seat of the leader would not be challenged until following the next general elections?  But you’re not happy with the leadership and the outcomes of several of the elections that he has presided over.  What happens in that situation where he is saying that you would have to grin and bear it until he is done in 2025?”

 

Tracy Panton, Area Representative, Albert

“There is no provision in the constitution of the party that says you have to grin and bear it.  We have the requisite number of signatures, any decision of the N.P.C. or even any decision of the national convention can be reversed.  You have the right to change your mind, there’s a threshold you have to meet and once you meet that threshold then the matter is tabled for consideration.  The problem that we’re having is that we can’t even have a discussion.  We can’t even have a meeting to discuss or to find a way forward.  There has been a complete shut out, if you will, of being able to engage.”

 

Isani Cayetano

“One would think that the role of the chairman is to be as impartial as possible but at the same time flexible where certain things are concerned.  Do you believe that based on what transpired at the last N.P.C. and the fact that the chairman hasn’t necessarily responded to the letters that you’ve written to him that he is being, in a sense, inflexible or is not budging?”

 

Tracy Panton

“I think he’s being completely biased.  I think the chairman has shown his complete bias in this situation which is unfortunate.  He is the guardian and the caretaker of the constitution of the party.  He should help to facilitate this dialogue, not shut it down.”

Opposition Leader Shyne Barrow is presently out of the country and has spent the better part of this week in Jamaica.  During his visit, Barrow has met with Prime Minister Andrew Holness at Jamaica House.  P.M. Holness is the Chairman of the Caribbean Democratic Union and Tracy Panton is the Vice Chair of the C.D.U.  But is his visit to the land of wood and water a mere distraction from the internal strife that is tearing apart his party?  That’s what we asked Panton earlier today.

 

Isani Cayetano

“What do you make of the party leader’s many outside visits to other heads of state, heads of government and other political leaders outside of Belize in the face of inner strife within his own party?”

 

Tracy Panton, Area Representative, Albert

“He has his own approach to leadership, I certainly, if I were in his position, I would try to be in country and find a way to sort this all out.  That would be my approach.  There is very little we can garner externally if we can’t fix our house and we can’t right our ship internally.  But that’s his choice, that’s his call.”

On Thursday night, a video clip of dancehall recording artist Vybz Kartel went viral when he put Belize on notice that he will be visiting the Jewel in the weeks ahead.  He also mentioned that he will be calling on his “brother from another mother”, Party Leader Shyne Barrow during his time in the country.  Kartel, as many would know, was recently released from prison after spending the last thirteen years incarcerated for the murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams.  While with the Albert Area Rep this afternoon, we asked her for her thoughts on the friendship and Kartel’s plan to vacation in Belize.

 

Isani Cayetano

“What do you make of Vybz Kartel mentioning that he’s going to visit Belize in the next two weeks to spend some time with Shyne and, of course, his girlfriend?  What do you make of that announcement?”

 

Tracy Panton, Area Representative, Albert

“You know, the party leader chooses who his friends are, I don’t have any say in that.  It’s a very personal situation.  I think that we have a lot of serious national matters, issues that need to be addressed that the U.D.P. should be giving far more attention to than we are able to at this time.  But Vybz Kartel, as well as anybody else, is welcomed to come to Belize to vacation and get to know the country and the people. That’s his friend.”

As we reported, Doctor Osmond Martinez was sworn in as Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Trade two days ago. The former C.E.O. in the Ministry of Economic Development won handsomely at the polls last month in the Toledo East by-election. Today, Cabinet Minister, Orlando Habet said he thinks Martinez is a plus for the party, the government and for Belize.

 

Orlando Habet, Cabinet Minister

“I am so happy that Minister Martinez is now part of our team – a very qualified, very able individual, and I think it will just be a plus for our administration to have him now, with the experience that he has gained at the Ministry of Economic Development, and now assisting Mr. Fonseca as a Minister of State in Foreign Trade, absolutely great for us as a party, but also for the administration, for our people. Because of his experience that he has gained at the Ministry of Economic Development, as I mentioned and then here at Foreign Trade, they would be closely linked. There are a lot of things that are closely linked where he can move that knowledge that he has gained there to Foreign Trade to improve not only the investments but also local economy.”

On Sunday, the People’s United Party held a convention to endorse a standard bearer for Queen’s Square. Retired educator, Doctor Lorna McKay was endorsed to do battle for the party in the next general elections. McKay will square off against Godwin Haylock, who defeated Shane Williams at a U.D.P. convention in 2023. Interestingly, the constituency has been dominated by the U.D.P. for decades, and in the last general elections, Denise “Sista B” Barrow won over newcomer, now Deputy Mayor, Alan Pollard by three hundred and thirty-one votes. McKay says she sees a need for growth and development in the constituency.

 

Dr. Lorna McKay, P.U.P. Standard Bearer, Queen Square

“I have been walking through the area with my campaign team, and there are a lot of room for growth in Queen Square, so far as education, so far as housing, so far as repairs to housing, so far as community projects, those are very needed in Queen Square. Queen Square right now is basically dead. Nothing is happening in Queen Square. It is very important that projects and plans and proper plans are put in place to make the people of Queen Square proper residents and to make sure that they are able to live just like everybody else.”

 

Marion Ali

“What plans, what proper plans are you talking about?”

 

Dr. Lorna McKay

“We’re talking about implementing projects for kids, implementing healthcare projects for people who are shut ins, um, looking at the housing situation in Queens Square, making sure that people can get some sort of assistance, so far as sometimes it’s just a sheet of zinc that a person needs to stop the water from coming in; looking at other things like community projects so far as  parks, playgrounds, making people comfortable to live in that space.”

 

P.U.P. Leader, Prime Minister John Briceño wrote on his Facebook page, quote, “The blue wave was strong in Queen Square as our Party leadership and supporters turned out for Dr. Lorna McKay’s endorsement convention. Dr. McKay is a career educator now seeking to elevate her community service to the national level as standard bearer for Queen Square,” unquote.