Belle, Wickham knock Blackett’s comment

by COLVILLE MOUNSEY

colvillemounsey@nationnews.com

THE STATEMENT of a political neophyte is how political scientist Dr George Belle has characterised the response of the general secretary of the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) Steve Blackett, who said the two DLP members appointed to the Senate by Ralph Thorne cannot speak on behalf of the party.

Belle’s views were supported by fellow expert Peter Wickham, who said the party, which was relegated to the political wilderness since 2018, was spurning a golden opportunity for resurgence.

One day after Thorne was sworn in as Opposition Leader, former DLP candidate Ryan Walters and party newcomer Tricia Watson were chosen as his picks for senators.

Pulling no punches in his critique, Belle said that “feeble attempt at muddying the waters” was likely out of fear that the days of Dr Ronnie Yearwood’s leadership of the party may be numbered.

He explained that if predictions of Thorne joining the DLP become reality, the party constitution dictates that Thorne automatically becomes the political leader while Yearwood would be relegated to the administrative leader.

“Thorne has been strategic in his movement towards a mass party. It is naive to think that he could have done those Senate appointments without speaking to top people in the DLP. It is likely, especially based on how Blackett is speaking, the faction that may have spoken to Thorne is not close to Yearwood,” Belle said.

Political leader

“If Thorne wants to join the DLP, it will have to be some executive functionary that says he cannot join. If he joins the party while being the Opposition Leader, based on the Constitution, he is immediately the political leader. In so doing, he immediately reduces the president of the party to an administrative position,” he added.

The political scientist argued that the interest of the current DLP leadership may have been better served by throwing their support behind Thorne, the MP for Christ Church South.

Meanwhile, Wickham said that a move to the DLP by Thorne could only redound to the benefit of the party.

“I cannot understand for the life of me what would possess him [Blackett]to make a statement like that. It is a situation where Ralph is trying to help the Democratic Labour Party and it reminds me of when the Prime Minister [Mia Amor Mottley] offered the DLP those two Senate seats and they said that they do not want them. It is as though the DLP does not want to help itself,” Wickham said.

“I appreciate that he may want to protect Yearwood but even he has to face the political reality. Yearwood’s days are numbered, but what matters is who is best able to take the DLP to where it can regain some parliamentary legitimacy. Clearly, Thorne is in a better position to do that,” he added.

On Tuesday, Blackett said while the party congratulated Watson and Walters on their appointment to the Upper House, their views did not represent the DLP. He pointed out that the party has its own mechanism through which they would voice their concerns on matters of national interest.