By Robert Andre Emmanuel
The newly elected Political Leader of the United Progressive Party (UPP), Jamale Pringle, said that keeping the fabric of the party together was important to him as he now seeks to bring everyone together following the 12th Biennial Convention.
The opposition party has officially elected a new executive to run its affairs, with many veterans re-elected to their various posts.
Speaking on Observer AM Monday, Pringle said that he did not want to engage in campaigning over fears that it could lead to divisions within the organisation.
“I was going to allow the process to take its course and whatever the outcome was, I will just line up behind that decision,” he said.
“I think where we are now as an organisation, our past taught us quite a bit and it would be rather foolish to try to engage in any form of smear campaign against each other, knowing that we must face the electorate with the same individuals,” he added.
The race between Pringle and Lewis was keenly watched with Pringle being seen as the choice for most party stalwarts, as evidenced by the vote on Sunday.
Pringle, who now becomes the party’s third political leader after former Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer and former leader Harold Lovell, received 237 votes while Richard Lewis’ 173.
Pringle now has the task of quickly reuniting the party to prepare for the 2028 general elections.
“There are too many things that we learned while preparing for the convention that I believe we didn’t spend enough time on,” Pringle stated.
Some of his plans as Political Leader include a legal action fund, as he stated that the party needs to challenge the ruling administration — not only in Parliament but also in the courtroom — on its various policies, as well as building a party headquarters.
For now, Pringle said that he plans to meet with members of the UPP’s youth arm, Progressive Youth, in order to mobilise all efforts to win over young people to the party as well as support their efforts to achieve their vision.
Meanwhile, Pringle is also keeping his cards close to his heart over who will be chosen to be his deputy political leaders.