On Tuesday, February 1st, and for the second time, the Area Representative of Mesopotamia, Honourable Moses ‘Shyne’ Barrow, was sworn in as Leader of the Opposition (LOO) under the United Democratic Party (UDP). This came after Honorable Patrick Faber resigned from the post after being involved in a domestic issue with his fiancée. Although he is no longer the LOO, Faber continues being the leader of the UDP.
Faber announced his resignation on January 24th and became effective at the end of that month. Faber is expected to submit an official letter of resignation to the UDP’s chairman, but this is yet to be done.
The other seat up for grabs is the UDP leadership, and besides Barrow showing interest in it, another of his colleagues, Albert Area Representative Honorable Traxy Taegar Panton, also wants the position. She would be the first woman to lead the party and perhaps become the first female prime minister. A special session took place on Sunday, January 30th, where Barrow and Panton made presentations to the UDP-Caucus for Change group. They both ask for support in their bid for party leader. At the end of the meeting, the Caucus reportedly endorsed Barrow for the UDP leadership. A new party leader will be elected at a convention on March 27th, where Panton, among other candidates, will run for the post.
Barrow first became the LOO in Јunе оf 2021, following Faber’s domestic issue. A recall vote to remove Faber was also held shortly after, but Fаbеr survived аnd wеnt оn tо rеgаіn thе ѕuрроrt оf hіѕ соllеаguеѕ іn thе Ноuѕе of Representatives lеѕѕ thаn thrее mоnthѕ lаtеr. He once became the LOO.
However, аftеr thе rесеnt dоmеѕtіс іѕѕuе wіth hіѕ fіаnсéе which ended with an arrest warrant by police and the case appearing at the Belize City Magistrate Court, he was forced to resign. At the House Sitting this Friday, February 4th, Barrow will lead the debates as the new Leader of the Opposition. Meanwhile, the UDP’s Central Executive Committee is reportedly gearing up for a press conference on Wednesday, February 2nd, to share what is next in UDP restructuring.
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