Steve Blackett’s suspension as general secretary of the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) should be viewed as the likely demise of president Dr Ronnie Yearwood’s cornerstone “big tent” policy, political scientist Devaron Bruce has said.
He also suggested the move further strengthens the hand of political leader Ralph Thorne and signals the DLP president’s declining power.
In a surprise development late Thursday, Blackett was suspended by the party’s general council while facing an investigation over disciplinary charges.
A late-afternoon general council meeting was convened on Friday. But Barbados TODAY was told there would be no updates following the meeting.
Although there has been no confirmation, it is thought that Blackett’s suspension was brought about by his harsh criticism of political leader Thorne to the media during a DLP meeting. The former DLP minister also proposed a motion to revoke Thorne’s membership and expel him from the party.
Bruce said Blackett’s suspension cannot be seen as a positive development for Dr Yearwood, given the general secretary’s strong support for his presidency.
“It seems to be the downfall of the ‘Big Tent’,” Bruce told Barbados TODAY on Friday. “If you recall, Ronnie Yearwood came into office in 2022 speaking about a big tent and an inclusive Democratic Labour Party…. That concept seems not to be going very far any time soon. What seems to be infighting has now turned into what appears to be the DLP turning the leaf. Now, whether the leaf is turning forward or backward, that would be up to the public to decide, but it seems that the tenureship of Dr Yearwood and his supporters seems to be under threat.
“I think last night’s developments are really showing some indication of that. You have to begin now to question where the party goes from here as it relates to the presidency of Dr Yearwood, [and] the suspension of Steve Blackett. Two of those came as a package.”
Thorne has remained mum on the issue thus far, but Bruce stressed that for unity to return to the party, the political leader bears some responsibility in helping to rebuild broken bridges.
He said: “As political leader of the party, your responsibility in part would be to present the Democratic Labour Party that is variable for electoral success. Party of the viability will be unity; whether persons perceive the party to be unified, given the fact that Barbadians are unlikely to elect a divided political party. I think it’s an important question to see where Ralph Thorne falls on this situation.
“The question becomes whether or not the changing of the guard is the growing of the guard.”
The political analyst noted that the opposition party’s share of the popular vote grew only from 22 per cent to 27 per cent between the general elections of 2018 and 2022.
“Therefore, it has considerable work to do if it wants to regain government. Questions have to be raised whether the sidelining of Steve Blackett and seemingly the sidelining of Ronnie Yearwood undermines the unity of the Democratic Labour Party, to where it ought to be.”
DLP members must be open to reexamining the way they conduct their politics and internal affairs if they wish to once again have the confidence and trust of a large portion of the electorate, he added.
“The question becomes whether the long-standing members of the DLP, those who have . . . that long tenureship in the party, whether they are comfortable moving forward in a way that is inclusive and a way that attracts new people. The reality is that the DLP needs a considerable list in order to do well electorally and to do well politically. It will require new models, new approaches, new messaging, new policy, and just a refreshness of the DLP that some within the DLP may not be able to accomplish [presently].” (Also see Page 4)
