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PUP’s Sheepish Retreat, Saldivar Smiles
posted (July 6, 2018)
On Tuesday, the PUP Chairman announced that they had decided to re-open the application process for the Belmopan standard bearer convention.

This directly benefits and placates Arthur Saldivar, who brought a lawsuit against his party to challenge his disqualification from the race.

He filed a claim before Justice Shona Griffith, and after the first hearing in the Supreme Court last week Friday - the PUP agreed to postpone the convention by one week. But the party has since walked back their hardline even more - agreeing now to have the convention at the end of August - which would be just fine by Saldivar who needs time to campaign.

And maybe that's why he was a no show at court this morning when the entire press showed up for a full hearing. Instead, we were told that the matter had been adjourned.

We spoke with Saldivar on the phone, and he told us since his party has postponed the convention all the way to Sunday, August 26, there was no longer any need for today's injunction hearing. From Saldivar's perspective, the party has already restrained itself, and given the added concession to allow him to re-apply.

When we asked him if he is prepared to drop his lawsuit, he said that it's premature to talk about that at this time. He said that he will see how the re-application process goes, and that will determine how he will move forward.

He told us that he considers this challenge to be bigger than his candidacy. He wants a precedence to be set so that any politician after him will be protected from the uneven application of the rules of a mass party's constitution.

Saldivar said, quote, "I would want to have the precedence set that the political parties need to follow their constitution, and cannot have trustees of the parties be arbitrary and capricious in how they apply the rules." End quote.

And it seems that Saldivar may have hit solid ground with that stance.

We've seen a copy of an affidavit that Party Chairman Henry Charles Usher recently swore to for this lawsuit. Chairman Usher makes it clear that his party intends to challenge Saldivar's claim on its merit, and his factual account of the rejection of his candidacy.

He does make an interesting assertion, however. He says, quote, "The National Executive… recognizes that if the Claimant was wrongfully prevented from participating in the Belmopan Convention, that he would have suffered a loss that is incapable of remedy by way of damages." End quote.

Usher goes on to explain that the National Executive has decided to give Saldivar the benefit of any doubt, they will postpone the convention to the end of August 2018. He also informs the court that Saldivar's application will be reconsidered as if the disciplinary actions and suspension against him never occurred.

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