NDC General Secretary Peter David this morning signed documents to contest the July 8 general elections. But his party has also put in place a contingency plan in the event of further legal manoeuverings by the government to stop him from contesting the polls.
It’s nomination day today for all candidates contesting the election. David, a lawyer, is the incumbent for the Town of St. George.
The New National Party government has gone to court to challenge David’s eligibility to sit in parliament, claiming he is a Canadian citizen. The court had dismissed the challenges five times.
Government’s legal advisor Hugh Wildman had indicated that an attempt would have been made to stop David’s filing of his nomination papers today.
Mr. David, accompanied by a team of lawyers and dozens of supporters, walked through the streets of St. George’s this morning to the electoral constituency office.
The crowd of supporters, joined by onlookers who left their workplaces to spectate, waited patiently for more than an hour for David to emerge from the office. When he did, he was greeted with hugs and cheers.
David told reporters that he had no problems signing his nomination papers. However, he said that should the government try to block him from contesting the polls and succeed, NDC founding member Ken Joseph will enter the race.
If Joseph does have to run, he’ll do so as an independent candidate. A businessman, Joseph has previously run as an NDC candidate for the Town of St. George.
During his interview with the press, David urged supporters to leave the area to avoid confrontation with backers of NNP candidate Brenda Hood, who was on her way to filing her nomination papers.
The NNP candidate and her supporters, with police escort, arrived with percussionists on two open-back trucks..
