Blackman resigns; Belle says Husbands should act as education minister

Political analyst Dr George Belle has called on Prime Minister Mia Mottley to appoint Sandra Husbands as acting minister of education, arguing that her temporary leadership would provide stability following Chad Blackman’s resignation as minister of educational transformation and from the Senate.

The resignations were constitutionally required to clear the way for Blackman to contest the May 21 by-election under the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) banner. He had been appointed to the education portfolio just two months earlier, following a February 25 Cabinet reshuffle.

“If he is a candidate for the election to the House of Assembly, then he will have to give up the position in the Senate,” Dr Belle told Barbados TODAY. “And if he gives up the position in the Senate, he cannot be a minister because he’s not in any part of the legislature then. So [his actions] follow constitutional logic. To be a minister, you either have to be in the lower house or in the Senate. And only a limited number of people are ministers from the Senate anyhow.”

Nomination Day was Tuesday for the by-election to fill the seat left vacant by former MP Edmund Hinkson.

Dr Belle suggested that Husbands was the most suitable person to fill Blackman’s shoes to ensure stability at the Ministry of Education.

“You’ll just have to put somebody to act in the meanwhile because it’s not any long-winded election process,” he said. “Sandra Husbands can easily [act].”

During her visits to schools during the 11-plus exam on Tuesday, Husbands spoke to reporters in her capacity as Minister of Training and Tertiary Education.

Dr Belle emphasised that having one minister act temporarily for another within the same ministry would be the smoothest path forward. “It wouldn’t be overburdening on Sandra Husbands and I think that would be the most seamless way of dealing with the issue,” he said.

“The prime minister could do anything…. She could appoint a new minister of education…. She could even change the Ministry of Education back to what it was before. The Cabinet is completely in the hands of the prime minister.”

Asked whether a new appointment might be the better course of action, Belle replied: “I believe that since the ministry already has two ministers, why can’t one minister of education act for the other one, you know, until the post can be confirmed?”

With just weeks until the by-election, Dr Belle said it made little sense to complicate the matter: “It’s a comfortable thing to do rather than go appointing a new minister. That would look a bit cumbersome.”

Whether Blackman returns to the Cabinet depends entirely on the outcome at the polls.

Dr Belle hinted at the possibility of Blackman returning to his post, whether or not he wins the by-election: “If he becomes a member of the legislature again, he can be reappointed to the Senate or the Cabinet. It’s just a wait and see now.”

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb