Former Belize city mayor and President of the Senate attorney Darrell Bradley has said that he will run for Leader of the opposition United Democratic Party (UDP), if a recall petition currently underway to unseat Patrick Faber is successful. UDP chairman Michael Peyrefitte told the media over the weekend that the party’s Central Executive has met and confirmed that the Recall Convention will take place at Bird’s Isle in Belize city on 11 July 2021.
Earlier this week Bradley’s name came up as a potential candidate for the new post. In an interview Bradley commented, “I am definitely interested in the post, I just don’t know, necessarily what that would mean because I am not a part of whatever has gone on.” Bradley added, “People have been texting me and asking me to take up the leadership post and, of course, I am interested.”
Mr. Bradley said that while he has stepped back from political life for a while, he has always remained in contact with his colleagues from within the United Democratic Party (UDP), and over the years he has always expressed his interest in running for higher political office and so most naturally he was contacted as a potential candidate.
“The UDP constitution does say that the Leader of the Party has to be a member of parliament, so you either have to be a member of the House of Representatives or the Senate and the only way that I would be able to come into the race is through the Senate, because I am not a member of the House of Representative,” Bradley admitted. But on Monday 28 June 2021, Leader of the Opposition Hon. Moses Michael “Shyne” Levi Barrow set in motion the wheels for Mr. Bradley’s appointment to the Belize Senate. In a letter to Governor General Froyla Tzalam, Mr. Barrow states that: “I write to you on this occasion in accordance with part VI Section 64 (2) (e) of the Belize Constitution to advise her Excellency to declare the seat of Senator Khalid Belisle vacant. In accordance with part VI Section 64 (2) (b) of the Belize Constitution I hereby nominate Mr. Darrel Bradley to fill the seat left vacant by Senator Khalid Belisle.” Mr. Belisle is a former mayor of the City of Belmopan.
Bradley said he is of the opinion that the UDP needs to do things differently and elect somebody who would not only be able to energize the party but who can unite the different factions of the party, in an effort to win an election. “The UDP needs somebody that is not contentious. We have too much fighting and so forth; we would need somebody who is not necessarily involved in whatever is embroiling, among the different personalities in the party, but somebody that would be able to bring a fresh perspective and somebody who can be an organizer and who can look forward with a vision. I am very familiar with public relations and politics; I have good contacts with various members of society such as the churches and the unions, and so I think that I naturally have that personality of bringing people together, and I think that at the juncture, that is what the UDP needs.”
Bradley stepped down from his Mayoral post in February 2018, following two consecutive terms of Leadership at the Belize City Council. Back then he had announced that he was taking a break from politics for personal reasons but would be returning for higher office.
Faber has taken to the media circuit trying to make a pitch for party delegates to not have him recalled as Party Leader. Moses Michael “Shyne” Levi Barrow last week replaced Faber as Leader of the Opposition.