And as much as Penner has embarrassed and pained the Prime Minister, as party leader, to keep his government together, Barrow has ordered his senior ministers to go and support Penner in Cayo northeast and campaign to block a recall effort. That support was rolled out on Sunday, in time to seriously dampen the PUP's recall petition drive. Landy Habet is the PUP Standard bearer who lost by only 17 votes to Elvin Penner in the 2012 general election - and he is the man who would face him or his successor in a bye election. Today he told us how the effort has been somewhat stalled:..
Orlando "Landy" Habet - PUP Standard bearer
"On Sunday we were organizing a rally but we got some information early that the government people would be there trying to disrupt things to agitate something against it and so just about in the morning we found out that Mr. John Saldivar, the Deputy Prime Minister, the UDPs from San Ignacio - they had a meeting right beside where we were preparing for our activity. What we did was deployed the people out to do a house to house campaign. When we found out that the government was also doing a house to house campaign. but this was an anti-Penner petition campaign. The people are saying that they come in and they say that they came to apologize on behalf of Mr. Penner who is suffering from high blood pressure so he can't be here personally to ask for an apology. That's the campaign."
Jules Vasquez
"When will you get those 1800 signatures and are you facing the prospect that if you don't the PUP in Cayo Northeast will look quite lousy being that public sentiment is we believe is largely turn against Mr. Penner?"
Orlando "Landy" Habet - PUP Standard bearer
"We are on the ground and of course after Sunday it has been a little more difficult to collect the signatures because people are afraid. Belizeans are of a culture that we are not very militant and so we will say we want sometimes and sometimes we back off as soon as we are threaten."
"We are still out there. The government is doing their own job of going against the petition. We still are collecting signatures, may be slower than we did on Saturday because may be we should have anticipated that they would be out there. I am still confident that we would be able to collect those signatures."
Jules Vasquez
"However, the logic of the voter may also dictate that 'why would I vote for you right now,' it looks like we are going to have 3-4 more years of the UDP and you as a representative - electing you would only be symbolic because you cannot deliver goods and services to us without your government being in. Everybody wants to vote for a minister, somebody who can help them."
Orlando "Landy" Habet - PUP Standard bearer
"We have party faithful and also because we have people from the same government side (UDP) who see as a better leader. I think that will anticipate that this government will not last very long - that they will go out before their term, so whatever assistance, even if it is moral support that we can provide for them I think they will be satisfied that they do not have people in government who do not look after them."
Jules Vasquez
"Does anyone know how many signatures do you guys have right now?"
Orlando "Landy" Habet - PUP Standard bearer
"Up to Sunday we had pass the 1,000 mark. I think up to yesterday we had already pass close to the 1,300 mark and so we are not too far away from achieving the 1,800 signatures that we actually need."
As for Penner, today the Commissioner of police told LOVE FM that he is not being investigated for criminal wrongdoing at this time. Police are investigating irregularities and missing files at the Immigration Department.
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