And now that he's back in Belize, Barrow's task is to unite his divided party. Over the past year you've seen the UDP try to claw its way out of the electoral abyss and into a mass party that voters see as a credible alternative.
But with three elected members have leadership ambitions, it hasn't been easy. However, as we told you, Barrow has extended the olive branch to former leader, Patrick Faber, and has done the same with Tracy Panton.
But he wouldn't go into more details about his discussions with them because, according to him, it goes against the UDP constitution - a clause, we might add, that hasn't been much adhered to in the past.
Barrow added, though, that he's not too worried about the infighting since this seems to be the cycle of mass parties:
Shyne Barrow, Leader of the Opposition
"The architects of the constitution had the wisdom to say that any internal criticisms or constructive descent it should be internal and there's a reason because if every time you and your ma quarrel, you come on Sunup and talk about it then what will happen to that relationship, you know, we are a political organizations, but we're a family. I love Patrick, I love Tracy, I love everyone that is a UDP and we are working towards the same goal. We believe that we are the better government, we are the better party to lead this nation and make it better and that is the only focus and so I wasn't in Los Angeles trying to reclaim any type of glory, I was in Los Angeles reaching out to my colleagues as I always do, trying to push this country forward, having shadow cabinet, doing everything that I can in my power to have a strong opposition and so the former party leader, the Rt Hon Dean Barrow, he was there, there was a time there were only three of them in the House of Representatives. They've been defections in his leaderships as well, I don't care to call necessarily the names but even in Esquivel's time there was Philip Goldson and Derek Aikman and Hubert Elrington who left the party and formed their own party so it's nothing new so when everyone is saying the sky is falling and the world is coming to an end, I'm like [gestures]. It's not a dismissal of the gravity of healing and reconciliation and unification but that's just a part of the job."
