BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Mar. 3, 2022– Yesterday, news broke of the sudden death of United Democratic Party stalwart Herbert Panton. Reports are that he died suddenly sometime yesterday after being admitted to a private hospital on the previous night for an unknown ailment that is being classified by some members of the media as a “cardiac condition”. Panton, an attorney by trade, served the UDP for most of his adult life and held a number of posts within that party, and the wider society.
In a Facebook post following Panton’s death, his wife, Hon. Tracy Panton, who is an aspirant for the post of UDP leader, stated, “I lost my best friend yesterday, March 1st, 2022 on an Ash Wednesday. He was my ride or die. He was my one true love. He and I had BIG dreams together. We would fight for the things we believed in. We would stand up for the principles and values we shared. We would be the voice for the voiceless. He with his law practice, me through my bid for political leadership. “
The sudden loss came as a shock to Panton’s political family as well. Michael Peyefitte, the chairman of the UDP, referred to him as a “five-star general” of the party.
“There’s no bigger UDP than Herbert Panton, no bigger supporter of the UDP than Herbert Panton. It is a sad, sad day, and his passing is a serious blow to the United Democratic Party, that’s all I can say. I’m still in shock. I still can’t believe it. I couldn’t believe it when I first heard it, and it’s going to be a huge, huge loss for us,” Peyefitte said.
Peyrefitte told local media that Panton always wanted to be a lawyer, and that he “moved mountains” to accomplish his goal, and always made to a point call out any wrong he saw within the party.
“He moved mountains to go to law school; he made all the necessary sacrifices. He was a magistrate even [and a] distinguished attorney, and so we have lost not just a colleague, but a UDP brother and also a friend. He was the editor of the newspaper at one point, assistant secretary-general of the party at one point. He has played so many different roles for the UDP and is always one of those people who would be the first to put us right. One of the first persons to tell us what we were doing well, what we were doing wrong, and he was a person whom you would listen to, a person whose opinion mattered,” Peyrefitte remarked.
His wife, Hon. Tracy Panton, in her online reflection on her husband’s qualities, said, “Family was everything for Herbert Panton. If you knew him well, you know he had a way with words. He loved the English language, and he had a command of words. He could be sharp with his tongue, but he could not hurt a single fly. It was just not in his DNA. Hands down, he was my biggest fan, my most ardent supporter. He had his flaws, and so did I, but we were perfect for each other. We made a lifelong commitment to walk beside each other and hold each other’s hands through the thick and the thin, the highs and the lows, the good and the bad. One thing we knew for sure, we would not give up on each other, not now, not ever. I will always love him with every pore of my being.”
We extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Herbert Panton. May he rest in peace.