St George MP says constituents, and not the ABLP will decide his political future

Dean Jonas, Parliamentary Represen-tative for the St. George constituency, has declared that residents in the constituency are the only ones who will be able to determine his candidacy in the next general elections.
He made the statement on Sunday when he was asked about his future as the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party representative for the constituency.
The comment also came in light of recent changes which were announced during a meeting of the party’s executive on Friday night.
“I have no challenger. I have not indicated that I will not run and so I know if I run again, if the Lord permits, I will be victorious again, and I have no doubts about that,” Jonas said.
“I am doing very well in St. George. I have been on the back bench for some years but it was not by my choice. I believe that I can contribute a lot more.”
Asked whether he believes he shares the support of Prime Minister Gaston Browne, Jonas replied, ”I have the confidence in the people of St. George, and there are structures in the Labour Party for candidate selection.”
Several pronouncements were made during the ABLP’s executive meeting on Friday evening.
The most interesting development was Maria Bird-Browne’s decision to represent the St. John’s Rural East constituency in the next general elections as an ABLP candidate.
It was also confirmed that Darryl Matthew would contest the St. John’s Rural South seat, replacing sitting Member of Parliament Eustace “Teco” Lake.
OBSERVER media also understands that at least two other party contenders were told to stand down.
(More in today’s Daily Observer)