ABOUT A MONTH after losing political leadership of the Barbados Labour Party [BLP] to Owen Arthur, Mia Mottley yesterday made a dramatic last-minute withdrawal of a much hyped challenge to incumbent chairman George Payne who was returned unopposed.
But Mottley appeared to win the hearts of party supporters when she was boisterously hailed following her announcement that she would not take part in a tainted election process against the St Andrew MP.
In the charged atmosphere of the Deighton Griffith Secondary School on the second day of the BLP’s 72nd annual conference, Mottley described the election as a “side show” and withdrew her nomination. St Thomas MP Cynthia Forde later followed suit and surrendered her position as general secretary to St Lucy candidate Peter Phillips.
Mottley said the conference should not be remembered because of Payne, new Leader of the Opposition Owen Arthur, or herself, but should be regarded as the moment in time when the BLP’s membership said the legacy of Sir Grantley Adams should be honoured and democracy restored.
Before an audience from which Arthur was conspicuously absent, Mottley noted Section 36 [a] of the party’s constitution said that only one of every ten branch members should be allowed to vote as a delegate.
But, she added that the time had come when every member of the party should have the right to vote, whether for chairman, general secretary or any other position.
Mottley revealed several instances of irregularities which had occurred over the past months within the party.
She said St James North MP Rawle Eastmond had written a letter of complaint to her when she was Opposition Leader, as well as to Payne, about the dubious selection of delegates in his constituency.
Mottley added that 15 minutes before the start of yesterday’s session, she was given a list of all the delegates who would be voting.
“This is unacceptable,” she said, adding she had been informed that the BLP’s secretariat had been given instructions that neither her nor Forde should be given copies of the delegates’ lists.
The St Michael North East MP added: “I made calls at 11:30 a.m. yesterday, 3:30 p.m. yesterday, and seven o’clock last night.
“I have faced five general elections in this country. I have been general secretary of this party for nine years uncontested and I have never faced an election without knowing who are the people entitled to vote and I will not do so today.”
Mottley said a letter was written to Arthur, Payne and Forde on October 18 by the members of the executive of the BLP’s Women League requesting a meeting of the executive to choose delegates for the conference.
“That request was denied but yet a list of 210 delegates for the Women’s League was produced,” she said.
Mottley said one woman on the Women’s League delegates list wrote the party on the same day and complained that she was not a BLP member and had never joined the party.
The woman indicated that not only was her name on the list, but those of her family as well. She said the woman requested that her name be removed.
“To my horror, 15 minutes ago, I checked the list that was presented to me and the lady’s and her family’s names are still on the list,” she noted.
Mottley identified several BLP members and who had been mysteriously omitted from the delegates’ lists, and stressed she did not know “how to become chairman of the Barbados Labour Party even though I believe I would win”, under such circumstances.
