Replacing Ronnie

A month has elapsed since the United Workers Party's (UWP) discarded Ronnie Isidore as a candidate to contest the Mahaut seat in the next general election but his replacement has not been identified.

What's more perplexing is that Isidore is still a Senator of the UWP in Dominica's parliament even if he was sacked or discarded following a serious internal party rift that resulted in Isidore's removal by the central executive of the UWP.

According to a well-placed source, the UWP Mahaut branch held a meeting on May 29, 2014 at which Roseau Central Member of Parliament Norris Prevost was in attendance to discuss the issue of selecting a candidate but "they just could not come up with anything positive so the meeting was adjourned to June 5, 2014."

"When the date of June 5, 2014 arrived, they again had difficulties and so that meeting was not held and it was adjourned indefinitely because everybody was shying away from the issues," the source stated.

Among names we were told were being suggested to replace Isisdore were Agnes Esprit, Curtis Peltier, Felix Thomas and Julian Prevost.

But our source stated that since Isidore's sacking, the UWP "don't know where to turn."

"Replacing him (Isidore) is a hard task at this time…he had done a lot by also registering lots of people so right now things are apart those who crooked him and caused his demised can't be trusted and we don't want them," the source stated.

The source mentioned Julian Prevost who first won that seat for the UWP in Mahaut; he believes that 'besides Isidore, Prevost is the only person who can bring some sanity to the UWP in the Mahaut constituency."

"I will not vote for them unless they issue Ronnie a public apology. They have hurt him and I don't even think that they will get much (sic) votes in that constituency," the source said. When contacted former MP Julian Prevost denied that he was approached by the UWP to contest the Mahaut seat.

"That is not true," he stated.

But when asked if approached would he consider, he stated: "I will cross that bridge when the time comes…in the meantime, I am happily employed with CCP and I don't have that in mind."

He continued: "I don't have the political fire in my belly…you must have that to run and I would be doing the party and the people an injustice if I am to put myself in the race."

Ezekiel Bazil, the UWP President said that the issue of a candidate for the Mahaut constituency was being dealt with "internally."

"The Mahaut constituency matter is being dealt with internally at this time. We are working with the Mahaut constituency and they will guide us…we are open and as soon we have word for you we will tell you. Everything will be done in a prudent manner, take my word," he said.

He, however, refused to answer questions about the possible candidates the party will chose to run instead of Ronnie.