U.D.P. Vice Chair August Takes Alliance to Task on Unity Convention

The expulsion of Tracy Panton, Patrick Faber, John Saldivar and Beverly Williams from the United Democratic Party is the result of a series of issues that culminated in a failed attempt at recalling the leadership of Shyne Barrow.  That’s according to Deputy Chairman Alberto August.  Earlier today, August and National Campaign Manager Lindsay Garbutt did their media rounds, essentially responding to several claims made by the Alliance for Democracy earlier this week.  To begin with, August established the fact that the Alliance for Democracy no longer has the right to be heard by the United Democratic Party since its members have been formally kicked out.  As for the fate of an upcoming unity convention to be held by the Alliance in October, under the auspices of the U.D.P., August says he doesn’t know where that is coming from.

 

Alberto August, Deputy Chairman, U.D.P.

“Several things have been happening, da wahn evolution of various things.  We have tried mediation with a team that Mr. Garbutt headed.  We have tried negotiation and now we are at the point where we are at expulsion.  The official document out of the UDP, as you rightly said, is that these individuals have been expelled from the party.  So then, in terms of the UDP, they hold no locus standi and it is so unfortunate because when you are talking about people like the honorable Panton, and the honorable Patrick Faber, who has so much experience in politics, it is not something that you would want to do because they bring a lot to the party.  But in life there are some things that you might have to do.  They are calling this convention on the twentieth of October, I think, in Bird’s Isle.  With no locus standi in the UDP, I mean they cannot be calling a UDP convention because there cannot be two UDP.  We cannot be operating parallelly.  So while they may be calling that, there’s only one UDP.  So I don’t know what kind of convention they would be having, unfortunately.  And I don’t know because I hear them talking about an interim leader and electing an interim chairman, but I don’t know where that is coming from.  In terms of the UDP, like I said, having been expelled from the party, it places them in a precarious position.”