No Moore surprise

At least one political scientist isn’t entirely surprised by Toni Moore’s selection as the Barbados Labour Party’s (BLP) candidate for St George North.

Dr Kristina Hinds, a senior lecturer in political science at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, told Barbados TODAY there were already rumours that Moore, an independent senator and General Secretary of the Barbados Workers’ Union, was tipped to replace outgoing MP for the area Gline Clarke.

Dr Hinds said she believed Moore had a good chance of winning the seat in the upcoming by-election.

“I am not particularly surprised. There were rumours she was going to be the candidate and clearly she is now the candidate. I can’t make any speculations as to her motivation one way or another. It seems as though she was presented with an opportunity and she seized it.

“I think she has a good chance because for the last 26 years it has been a BLP seat so she has quite a good chance. Ms Mottley is the Prime Minister and is well-loved and it seems as if she has given this candidate her blessing so that may count for something,” Dr Hinds said.

She said Prime Minister Mia Mottley could also have used the opportunity to select a senator who held a Cabinet post as a possible candidate.

She said this would make the candidate more attractive to the people of St George North.

“I might have speculated that maybe one of the senators who has a Cabinet post would have been the person to run in that area so that you would have a person who is both a MP and in the Cabinet, assuming they are successful.

“But clearly she has St George roots and that counts for a lot, so I can understand the selection,” Dr Hinds said.

The university lecturer said the only concern she had regarding Moore’s selection was the process.

However, she said since she was not privy to what took place she was not in a position to say whether the proper procedure had been followed.

“What was surprising to me was that yesterday Gline Clarke did say that there is a whole process within the branch that needs to be followed and it will be followed in a democratic process.

“It wasn’t clear to me from what I heard yesterday that it was followed but I don’t know the internal workings of the BLP so I can’t say that definitively,” Dr Hinds admitted.
randybennett@barbadostoday.bb