Email

Print

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"You have resigned basically forthwith, in the next three days you will have officially resigned from NEMO. Explain to me, this is almost three months away from your original date of resignation - of departure - which was October?"

Phillip Willoughby, Aspirant - Port Loyola
"I think it's, it's being in compliance with what the law is. It's not me, it's not about me or the job I do."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Were you pressured to resign forthwith?"

Phillip Willoughby
"I believe what I did was within the law. And being pressured or pressured not, has no bearing on what had to be done."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Are they putting the screws on you, Mr. Willoughby? Because they want to make, there are those within the power structure of the UDP who now want to make your candidacy as difficult as possible, because they want Mike Peyreffite to ascend as the Standard Bearer for Port Loyola."

Phillip Willoughby
"In all honesty, in a pluralistic society, democracy reigns, and if anybody chooses to support anyone, that's their right, and you can't fight that."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"But, if the party power structure chooses that - you know what - "we want Mike in that area, we don't want Phil." If the party power structure chooses that, then it puts you at a disadvantage. Because not only do you have to beat your opponent, you might have to beat the entire party hierarchy."

Phillip Willoughby
"Well that's your view."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"It puts you in a difficult situation because you have no job. How will you run a campaign, how will take care of a division if you are losing your job Friday?

Phillip Willoughby
"Well, if...I, Like the squirrel he puts away his nuts during the summer months, and, in the winter months, he falls back in his reserves, so, I hope that the little I have will be able to hold true for me to continue at least take care of the family business and expenses. And I continue to approach each and every home, each and every individual, street by street and there's nothing that can beat that once you're on the ground."

"And there's no hiding from that, no getting away from that, so what my fellow colleague or fellow aspirants will have to do, they will have to get on the ground."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Will you simply outwork Mike Peyreffite? I know that, I'm saying that because I don't think you can plan to outspend him, and we know that you are known in the public as a, as a tireless worker."

Phillip Willoughby
"The people noh wah see campaigners, the people don't want to talk to campaigners, the people want to see the candidate. And then just maybe the energy you speak of is what I have."

"You cyaah have that dogmatic behavior, or that abusive way you deal with people, you have to embrace people and their situation. Not the office hours, not the secretary, not the high fence, not living within the constituency kinda thing. Because the electorate has become much more wiser, and much more educated to this extent. You understand me? And they know real now. And they have had some bad experiences, and for me, and get this, it's about rebuilding the bridges that were broken down, and mending the fence that has been torn down."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Is that a suggestion that the current area representative is the one who has broken those bridges and left those fences in a state of disrepair, because, he doesn't support you?"

Phillip Willoughby
"I have nothing bad to say about Minister Martinez."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"But you said earlier that the fences need mending, and the bridges are broken."

Phillip Willoughby
"This is the constituency saying..."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Yes, but da he bruk it."

Phillip Willoughby
"Well, like I seh, if he supports Mike that's good for him, that's good for him, kudos to him. I just have to dig down and work extremely harder, that's just it."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Now, shouldn't the constituents be concerned that maybe you're leveraging your candidacy to gain a diplomatic posting as you did in the past? It never worked out, but we know that a posting, the rumors are one might be opening up in LA, how do we know that you aren't using this fi sell out?"

Phillip Willoughby
"I already resigned from NEMO, which the remuneration was extremely good."

"So I gave that up to be here and here is where I'll stay up until the convention and the people decide who they want to vote for in the convention and then move on from there."

"How is it that the people are saying they would like my candidacy and for me to continue aspiring, and how the optics of that would look if I should now step back? That would be a career killer."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"To be real, you've done it before."

Phillip Willoughby
"Yes, I was young then. Again, I was a team player and I believed that that wasn't the time. The party still won and that was the great victory for us."

Willoughby was at his Port Loyola Sports Summer Camp - which started yesterday. On the flyer, it says the camp is sponsored by the National Sports Council - a stamp of endorsement which usually only comes with a nod of support from Sports Minister Patrick Faber. We asked Willoughby about ti today:

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"I know this is sponsored. I saw the flyer. Its sponsored by the Sports Council. Is that an indication that you have the implicit support of the Minister of Sports Patrick Faber?"

Phillip Willoughby, Aspirant - Port Loyola
"As far as I know I back no bones and carry no enemies. If there is a way for us to collaborate with any minister or any entity that is for the benefit of any community or any constituency, then it's what I eat and breathe everyday - people, people."

Deputy Leader Faber refused to discuss Willoughby's candidacy in an interview today.