ABLP supporters gather in Fort Road and later in All Saints
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua (January 4, 2023)—With two weeks before Antiguans and Barbudans go to the polls, the incumbent Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) has ramped up its campaign with a series of rallies across the country.
Wednesday afternoon saw ABLP supporters criss-cross the southern section of the island before ending their whistle stop at Mack Pond in All Saints. There, various speakers threw their support behind Colin James, the party’s candidate for the All Saints East and St. Luke constituency.
The campaign events gave the Gaston Browne-led party a platform to showcase plans for housing and urban renewal.
“I want to assure the people of Antigua and Barbuda that we will scale up our housing project, so you will get far more homes built out on an annual basis than we would have done in the past. Our objective ultimately is to deliver seven to ten thousand homes for the people of Antigua and Barbuda,” Browne told supporters in All Saints. “You must have good-quality, climate-resilient homes.”
James said plans are underway for housing developments in the Osborne’s and Burke’s areas and for a metal manufacturing plant backed by a Dominican Republic investor.
The event followed a rally in Fort Road 24 hours earlier.
At the Fort Road Rally, incumbent candidate Melford Nicholas unveiled plans for construction of duplex housing at Orange Alley, which he says would be affordable for residents.
“Housing development is going to be a major part of my involvement with you for the next five years,” Nicholas said as he showed the crowd a rendering of the proposed project.
However, the rhetoric was not limited to housing.
“Not dem again” was the refrain from Fort Road when the party rallied its supporters to secure votes in a community that could make or break the St John’s City East candidates.
Both the ABLP and the main opposition United Progressive Party (UPP) scheduled public events in Fort Road this week to boost the profiles of its respective candidates Melford Nicholas and Harold Lovell.
For the incumbent party, Tuesday’s rally not only provided an opportunity to question Lovell’s past stewardship of the constituency, but his overall leadership of the opposition party.
“This election is about leadership,” ABLP candidate for St John’s Rural West Gail Christian told supporters. “It’s about judgment and it’s about competence.”
“We cannot put the country in what is and what remains a failed experiment. A party that was built on lies, matured on lies and sustained on lies. Not them again.” Christian said. The government senator pointed to various projects, which she said were a testament to the ABLP’s leadership. The list included the port expansion, the establishment of the University of the West Indies fourth landed campus and the government’s intervention that led to two banks shifting to local control.
Christian was one of several speakers who spoke ahead of the constituency’s standard bearer. The line-up also featured former City East candidate Lionel “Max” Hurst, ABLP Chairman EP Chet Greene, St Mary’s North MP Sir Molwyn Joseph and Prime Minister Browne, who was immediately followed by the incumbent candidate.
“He (Melford Nicholas) has out-performed Harold Lovell in every area of constituency development,” Browne said to the cheering supporters “Harold Lovell did not build a single home in this constituency.” Even as rain descended upon the crowds, Browne extolled various ABLP projects.
When the rains cleared and Nicholas took to the stage, it was his turn to recount his stewardship as custodian of St John’s City East. He pointed to the construction of bridges and culverts, installation of a perimeter surveillance system at Princess Margaret School, fencing of the Fort Road Playing Field and sourcing employment for constituents as some of the achievements in the constituency.
“It is clear. I am willing to serve for another five years. There is work to be done,” Nicholas said.
