by Linda Straker
- New political leader will be elected when NDC holds its convention on 3 November
- Efforts now are on mobilising the constituencies
A new political leader will be elected by delegates of the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) when the party holds its convention on 3 November 2019 at the Trade Centre.
Political leader Nazim Burke resigned in July 2018 after the party were unable to win a seat in the 13 March 2018 General Election. Joseph Andall has been the interim leader since Burke’s resignation.
Raymond Roberts, who was a candidate in 2018 General Election said that efforts are on mobilising the constituencies. “The focus of the work now is to energise the constituencies,” he said while a guest on the popular Grenada Broadcasting Network “To-the-Point” daily midmorning talk show.
“It’s going to be one of the significant conventions of the NDC, all are significant but this one has greater significance. You know our results in the last two general elections were not as desirable,” said Roberts who lost the St George’s South constituency to the New National Party’s Nickolas Steele in the 2018 General Election.
“At the moment we are working as a team behind the scene not in the public eyes, to ensure that we do what is right. Numbers at the Trade Centre is not all, we are going there with a purpose,” Roberts said, confirming that there will be visiting speakers.
The theme for the convention will be announced in the coming days by the interim leader. In the build-up to the convention, the party is having a series of public meetings. Roberts said that there will be about 400 delegates attending the convention and, in addition to the political leader position, all other posts on the executive will become vacant on the day and must be filled during the election segment by the delegates.
The party which governed the country from July 2008 to February 2013 was unable to win a seat in both the 2013 and 2018 General Elections. As a result, the country’s parliament does not have an elected opposition, but only opposition senators in the Upper House of Parliament who were appointed by Head of State, Governors-General Sir Carlyle Glean and Dame Cecile La Grenade respectively.
A number of other NDC executive members have resigned, including Chairman Vincent Roberts and Public Relations Officer, Randal Robinson.
