Earlier in the news you saw the agitation from the teachers and public service unions. Well, today in the city streets - there was a sort of counter to that.
It was led by Phillip "Fawda" Henry… He's known from his past public appearances as a concerned citizen, an activist, and a traffic safety instructor to children.
But today, he stepped forward to act - he says - as the voice of poor Belizeans who have been suffering silently during the COVID-induced financial crisis.
He's currently the lead personality behind a new organization that claims to have origins as a grassroots movement. This morning, they officially introduced themselves to the general public in a demonstration staged on the principal streets of Belize City. Our news team was out there to find out more about the organization known as UDAP. Daniel Ortiz has that story:
According to Phillip "Fawda" Henry, the voiceless citizens have agreed to form a new organization called the Union for Development, Advancement, and Prosperity, or UDAP for short. It is supposedly inspired by the pre-independence organizations in Belize that agitated against social injustice. And, the man who is supposed to take the role of the organization's lead advocate is none other than "Fawda" Henry himself.
Phillip "Fawda" Henry - President, UDAP "This organization started 2 weeks ago when the people cried to say that they need someone to stand up for the voiceless. This is a union formed in peace. It's formed by the people, which is the government, at the end of the day. We need to dialog with who we placed there. We placed that government there. We placed them to look after our resources. We are talking about 60,000+ poor individuals from Belize, who are unemployed. We're talking about the tourism sector where hundreds and hundreds of people lost their jobs. Still today, they cant put bread on their tables. [The] have loans, and the unions are not speaking [up] for these people."
But, for a new organization that's focused on the struggles of the poor, it's leadership sure has a lot of views against the protest and strike actions currently being staged by the teachers and public officers.
Phillip "Fawda" Henry "These people that you see out here are asking me to ask the government not to dialog with these union people and give them the 10%. We cannot allow [them] to give 10%. I am so frustrated with what the unions are standing for today because it is hurting us the people, and we are the government, as you see here today. If the government gives them 10% then what will [be] left for these people. And I stand for the voiceless. No teacher can stand against me. I want to say this to the unions, and the members of all those other unions. They are selfish, and when you're selfish, you need to stay in your house and eat fish. These people and the rest of the Belizean people don't stand. We are not standing with the unions because they don't for us, the people. They stand in solidarity with themselves, all of them."
So, since their current views are mostly anti-union, we had to ask if this new movement is simply running political interference for the Briceno administration.
Reporter "What's your response to viewers who may take the view that this is simply a political movement being masqueraded as a people's movement?"
Phillip "Fawda" Henry "I could tell you that I have worked with both administrations. I work for the best interest of the people. It hurts my heart to hear many of the media [houses] have been singing that same Sankey for days. It should have been buried already at Lord Ridge Cemetery. But, I want to tell you today sir, this is not a political gimmick. It is serious. It is before us. This is not about the UDP and the PUP. This is about us, the people."
Whether or not UDAP has successfully passed the credibility threshold at this early stage, their leader says that they have massive support which can be mobilized to the streets.
Phillip "Fawda" Henry "This is only 50 people, but it's going to be more next week. We're going to have over 6,000 from out of the whole communities. They're going to be out here. I tell you, when 'Fawda' Henry calls, it's going to happen."
We note that most of the protestors were from the jungle area of the Pickstock constituency - an area often harvested by COLA for crowd support.
