| Earlier in the news we told you that Shyne Barrow would be revealing in the near future. But we've seen some of the candidates so far - Jose Espat, David Almendarez, Gladys Paredes, and Carlos Perrera. We already told you of the controversy Perrera found himself in - which Barrow dismissed. But what about the others? Well, he doesn't seem to think there are any.
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"I don't know what controversies you're talking about with Mr. Almendarez and Mr. Espat."
Reporter
"Well, Mr. Espat, you know, has all those allegations of being, calling himself a doctor, being a fake doctor, whatnot. We have Almendarez who, you know, all the FECTAB, all those press conferences and whatnot."
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"What's wrong with FECTAB fighting for the tourism industry?"
Reporter
"It's just a lot of controversy?"
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"What controversy is there in fighting for the tourism stakeholders?"
Reporter
"Fine."
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"When Almendarez was beating the UDP on the zinc fence radio station and TV, nobody had a problem with Mr. Almendarez."
Reporter
"Because he wasn't running."
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"It doesn't matter. He was an activist and he is speaking his mind."
Reporter
"But now he is running."
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"And so what is someone that is running? Someone that is running is someone that wants to represent people. So whether you represent people as a tourism stakeholder with your tourism organization, or you're a member of the United Democratic Organization wanting to represent people in Belize Rural Central or Albert, I don't believe it makes a difference."
"And I don't know what comments you're looking at, but I know when I look at the response for Mr. Espat, it has been overwhelmingly positive with people saying, yes, you know, you've been fighting for us. Take the next step. So I don't know what you're talking about. And I wish you would look at the comments. This is the only quarrel that I have with the media. You would come and you would say that. But you don't look at the comments about John Saldivar. What are the comments about John Saldivar? but I am asking about candidates, period. Because candidates are, whether it's PUP candidates, whether it's Alliance candidates or UDP candidates, what I'm saying is it is better for the UDP to move away from corrupt carcasses, from the corrupt dinosaurs that were occupying some of those constituencies than to maintain the status quo which the people rejected in 2020. So we prefer to proceed with new people. Everybody started somewhere. Manuel Esquivel started somewhere. Candidates have to have a first election. George Price lost his first election for the Belize City Council."
"So we have to start. And we prefer new candidates that have given themselves to community activism, to stakeholder activism, than to proceed with these run-of-the-mill garden variety corrupt all-time dinosaurs."
Reporter
"Mr. Pereira left the KHMH embroiled in controversy. Ms. Parades, who you now have in Collet, She's on social media supporting the People's United Party in October 2020, right before the general election. She posted a Facebook post supporting the People's United Party."
"She was also a member of John Saldivar's camp as well."
Shyne Barrow, UDP Leader
"So what's wrong with that? Tracy Panton was a member of the PUP. I could send you the video where she declares that she worked for the Mark Espat Camp."
"So now, people can't go from PUP to UDP. It happened many times in the history of our parliamentary voting, where people went from... I remember, Elito, Philip Goldson, Theodore Aranda. It happens all the time."
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