BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Apr. 28, 2022 — Former UDP Orange Walk South and North area representative, 70-year-old Ruben Campos, Sr., who also was a Cabinet Minister during two past UDP administrations, passed away on Friday, April 22 after a long battle with prostate cancer.
Campos served two terms as a government minister—first as a Minister of Health and Sports, and later as a Minister of State in the Ministry of Education. He held the first ministerial post under the first UDP administration headed by Manuel Esquivel, from 1984 to 1989, and later held a ministerial post during a subsequent Esquivel administration, which lasted from 1993 to 1998.
After losing his bid to be the area representative for the Orange Walk Central division in the 1998 general elections, Campos remained active in public life and in the party that he loved so dearly.
On Saturday, April 23, Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Moses “Shyne” Barrow, recalled in a social media post the moments the two spent together during the House of Representative sittings.
“Minister Campos would give me a copy of the House orders of the day as we sat in the gallery, me studying the art of the debate and parliamentary procedures and him mentoring me during the breaks to focus on the youth, music, and sports as the key factors for national development and a successful political career,” stated Barrow in the post.
The Leader of the Opposition ended his social media post by praising Campos for his dedication to the UDP and the country. “Your selfless dedication to Party [and] for Country will forever be celebrated as the benchmark for a political life of service,” said Barrow.
Notably, Campos is the fourth member of Manuel Esquivel’s 1993- 1998 UDP administration to pass away this year. Manuel Esquivel died in February, Elito Urbina in March, and earlier this month Melvin Hulse passed away after a battle with colon cancer.
The former Orange Walk area representative was laid to rest on Wednesday, April 27, in Orange Walk Town.