On Sunday, a growing contrast between the ruling United Democratic Party (UDP) and the Opposition People’s United Party (PUP) was evident in constituency conventions held in Corozal Southeast and Belize Rural North by the UDP and the PUP, respectively. In Corozal Southeast, a newcomer seized control of the constituency from the UDP’s 2008 general election candidate (who had lost by just 15 votes). In Belize Rural North, the PUP held an endorsement convention for an untested attorney, after weeks of wrangling ended with the party refusing for him to be challenged.
There appears to be a pattern emerging. In Corozal Bay, the UDP allowed a Cabinet Minister incumbent to be challenged, unsuccessfully as it turned out, by the Corozal Town Mayor and another candidate. In Cayo South, the PUP held an endorsement convention for a politically inexperienced architect after refusing for him to be challenged. In Orange Walk East, the UDP allowed the incumbent standard bearer, a former Cabinet Minister, to be challenged (by two candidates), and he was badly beaten. In Stann Creek West, the PUP pushed through an endorsement convention for the unsuccessful 2008 general election candidate. In Caribbean Shores, the UDP allowed the incumbent area representative, a sitting Cabinet Minister, to be challenged by a Belize City Councilor. The Minister defended his position. In Toledo East, the PUP are refusing to tolerate a challenge for the beaten 2008 candidate in the constituency.
This pattern is the opposite of the way it usually is. Normally, it is the ruling party is closing its doors to enthusiastic challengers for candidacy. The classic example of this was in the UDP candidate conventions leading up to the 1989 general elections. The red had won massively in 1984. But coming up to the 1989 generals, the UDP denied fair play to challengers in at least five different constituencies. The bad vibes damaged the UDP in the 1989 generals, when they lost.
It is usually the case, on the other hand, that the party in Opposition is seeking new blood to increase their energy and widen the party base. The Opposition party is usually looking to open its doors to the people, so to speak, at least, their rank and file. That is not happening so far in the present PUP. Decisions are being made at the top around private tables. Or, so it seems.
We have reminded the PUP on occasion that, whereas they won seven consecutive national elections between 1954 and 1979, since 1984 they have lost three out of the six general elections held.
Something happened between 1979 and 1984 which has changed the political fortunes of the PUP in a fairly dramatic way.
Our thesis at this newspaper is that the PUP leadership betrayed their foundation union base in order to guarantee United States support for Belize independence in 1981. The unions in Belize had become substantially more radical between 1974 and 1981, as Belize union leaders were being trained in various nations which the Americans considered communist, or at least socialist. The more radical union leaders in Belize were overthrown before independence, and replaced by leaders, or even new unions, which were acceptable to the Americans.
Since independence, the workers of Belize do not automatically vote PUP the way they had been doing from 1954. This is what the present leadership of the PUP is either unable or unwilling to recognize. The seeming arrogance of the present PUP leadership is misplaced. Things are not the way they used to be. The statistics prove that the PUP is not the electoral juggernaut it used to be. After the workers were betrayed in 1981, they no longer consider the PUP a sacred cow.
In fact, if one analyzes the PUP’s guiding philosophy since they returned to power in 1989, it can hardly be considered pro-workers. Because of that change in philosophy, the PUP, whose present leadership is closely linked to the globalist financial predator, Lord Michael Ashcroft, would have to go all out to assure support from the trade unions. Without that support, the PUP would be in trouble in 2013. This is real.