UDP Leader Patrick Faber said he would resign effective today - but when we checked with the party chairman Michael Peyrefitte a short time ago, he had still not received any letter of resignation.
But, Peyrefitte says he'll take Faber's word that his resignation will be effective as of today and proceed as such. The UDP Central Executive meets tomorrow to discuss the next steps - and Peyrefitte says he will take our questions after that.
And while there is great public puzzlement about what Faber's end game is at this stage - things are moving on without him.
Moses Shyne Barrow says he is going to the Governor Generals residence in Belmopan tomorrow to be sworn in as Leader of the Opposition. He has the majority of the UDP's 5 members of the house supporting him: they are himself, his aunt, Denise Barrow and First Deputy of the party, Hugo Patt.
Barrow is bolstered by a major endorsement he won this weekend - which is from the UDP's Caucus for Change - which claims to represent 19 constituencies. They met in Belmopan on Saturday where both Barrow and his lead rival Tracy Taegar Panton tried to woo members for their support. In the end, they selected Barrow and issued a statement saying, "...after careful deliberation (The Caucus) has concluded with an endorsement of the Hon. Shyne Barrow for Leader.Shyne is best suited to lead the Party at this time given his vision, decisive leadership, resourcefulness, and global exploits that continue to promote Belize." End quote.
But, those 19 seats may not be as solid a pact as it seems on the outside - since we know of at least a few defunct standard bearers who attended - purporting to still represent their constituencies - when they don't. So, in the end, it will be down to the delegates, a total of 516 of them - and both candidates are expected to spend the next 50+ days criss crossing the country campaigning furiously.
For her part, Tracy Taegar Panton - who was not a vocal critic of Faber when he was in the middle of his difficulties, has today come out with a statement blasting Shyne, and by extension Faber for domestic abuse. It says "We can not have different standards for those who aspire for the highest office in the land...Two persons have been publicly accused of domestic violence. One has been forced to resign." End quote.
Shyne also put out a statement, saying "We need a Leader who is fearless...We need a Leader who is reliable and consistent."
