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Tremors In the Barrow Cabinet? Ministers Categorically Deny
posted (May 31, 2016)
Last night, we gave you a blow-by-blow account of Sunday's UDP Convention for the post of First Deputy Leader. Patrick Faber easily defeated John Saldivar by a margin of 88 votes.

And, so, it is expected that he will be sworn in as the Deputy Prime Minister, a post reserved for the First Deputy. Well, today was the first Cabinet Meeting following that convention, and at around 10:00 - just as Cabinet was about to start - rumours went out fast and hard that the 11 ministers who supported John Saldivar had a list of demands for the Prime Minister - principally that Gaspar Vega would have to remain Deputy Prime Minister. And if not…well they would resign…

Now we stress, this was the rumour, but our best information from multiple sources is that it didn't happen.

But, there are a few facts which fueled that type of speculation. The first is that these 11 ministers from the John Saldivar camp showed up to the 10 o'clock Cabinet meeting late. Our information is that they first held their own meeting and all showed up about 20 minutes late. The next fact is that John Saldivar was not present on Sunday to concede defeat, although he did make a Facebook post later in the evening after the results were in. Thirdly, Saldivar and the ministers supporting him did have a private meeting with the Prime Minister after the cabinet meeting.

So today, 7News waited outside the Cabinet building and waited for an opportunity to address these unconfirmed reports with all the Cabinet Ministers we saw leaving. We got some varying responses from no comment to the strongest assertions that this supposed list of demands was absolutely untrue. Here's our Daniel Ortiz trying to speak with those Cabinet Ministers:

Hon. Gaspar Vega, Outgoing Deputy Prime Minister
"What we discuss in cabinet is a secret."

Reporter
"Sir, were you at Minister Saldivar's house this morning?"

Hon. Tracy Taegar-Panton, Cabinet Minister
"We are one party, politics done."

Daniel Ortiz
"Sir, we understand that the ministers are not particularly happy with the outcome of the convention and that they were some ultimatums given to the Prime Minister in the effect that they want Mr. Gaspar Vega to remain as the Deputy Prime Minister or they are intending to resign. Is that what happened?"

Hon. Manuel Heredia Jr., Cabinet Minister
"That is not so. Nothing of the sort is true. Our party is bigger than all of us and everybody feels that we have to move forward."

Hon. Michael Finnegan, Cabinet Minister
"That is not true. Nobody made no ultimatum to the Prime Minister and if you know the Prime Minister like I do, nobody can make no ultimatum to Dean Barrow. So that is nonsense. That is totally nonsense."

Daniel Ortiz
"Are you saying that the John supporters and the John Saldivar himself has conceded?"

Hon. Michael Finnegan, Cabinet Minister
"But of course they concede and they have to concede. I don't believe that you just lost and the following day you will be happy and clap hands, but the people have spoken. The base of the party have spoken, they have elected Patrick Faber as the first deputy leader of the party."

Hon. Patrick Faber, First UDP Deputy Leader
"We had a very good session this morning and we shared with each other our commitments to work with each other and to make sure that we work out whatever differences exist after this convention. That is merely what happened this morning. I think Minister Finnegan is right when he says that in fact things are still a bit raw, but it is not to the point where we are looking to break up the party or that they are not accepting the fact that my candidacy was successful. The Prime Minister made it very clear that he intends to gazette my becoming the new deputy prime minister of Tuesday of next week and he is saying that this is merely because there is a commitment for the sitting DPM Mr. Vega to go abroad on a conference that needs that kind of high level representation and he is not able to go as the prime minister, so he wants the DPM to go and Mr. Vega already has those plans. So I am prepared."

Daniel Ortiz
"There seems to be that party line everyone is taking, like nobody wants to concede that there are hurt feelings. Are there hurt feelings?"

Hon. Elodio Aragon Jr., Cabinet Minister
"Well every election, everybody takes it differently, but I think the people have spoken of this country and we need to move on. The democratic process has been done. We had our convention and the majority of the people decided and we need to move on."

Hon. Anthony "Boots" Martinez, Cabinet Minister
"The results are in sir and what can we do? The result are in and we are UDPs and we are supporting Minister Faber. So, I don't know what kind of concession different has been made, but it was amazing for the media to be out here. I don't know of any burning issues for the media to be out here on a Cabinet day."

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