Political turbulence continues within the United Workers Party (UWP) as party leader Allen Chastanet and former candidate for Castries South, Bertrand “Big Daddy” Johannes, exchanged sharp criticisms following a spate of resignations from the party.
During a Thursday night interview with Lisa Joseph, Chastanet attributed the recent exodus of members to influence at the constituency level, saying, “So let’s look at the latest announcement that 21 people resigned from the party. All those persons came from one constituency, Castries South, which was Big Daddy. And so he had stacked the constituency branch with his own supporters, became members of the party, and when it came to trying to select a candidate, we ran into a roadblock.”
Chastanet added that many of the resigning members were no longer active participants: “Some of them did not renew membership. So of the 21 people that supposedly resigned, 19 of them, their membership with the party had already expired a long time ago. And none of the 21 had participated in helping the party rebuild and to be where we are today.”
He also described the candidate selection process as thorough: “The constituency branches will identify people. The party is free also to identify people. Those persons go through an interview process at the constituency level… They then go through a screening process at the national level. Once that is done, I then, by the recommendation of the community, recommend to our national council who the candidates are.”
Chastanet questioned the motives of some switching allegiances: “Very interesting. So you have an individual who last night said that he’s Labour. He’s always been Labour. But this is the same individual months ago that applied to be a candidate for United Workers Party in Babonneau. If he was always a Labour, was there something more mischievous in his attempting to become the candidate?”
In response, Johannes, speaking on MBC’s Zafè Nou on Friday morning, rejected Chastanet’s claims and shifted the blame onto the party leadership. He said, “For one, he knew I was hospitalized. Allen never ever picked up the phone or even come to the hospital…So for Allen to come on his show and say that he didn’t select me, that’s why I resigned. That’s not why I resigned.
According to Johannes, he resigned because “Allen [Chastanet] is not good.”
Johannes emphasized longstanding tensions with party executives, citing several other resignations from the Party: “He [Oswald Ozzie Augustin] didn’t resign from the party, but he resigned from the national executive. Ozzie, I don’t know if Ozzie went back, but Ozzie resigned from the national executive right after elections. Pinkley [Francis], the former chairman, resigned right after elections. They cannot work with him [Allen Chastanet].”
He accused Chastanet of trying to control him and manipulate narratives: “Because I wasn’t taking Allen’s shit. Allen couldn’t control me. And I will say it, the reason why Allen didn’t support me, because he wanted me to smear his [Ernest Hilaire’s] campaign and name about the Juffali Affair and all that nonsense that I wouldn’t take into it. Because I ran the cleanest campaign in 2021 and everyone could attest to it.”
Johannes concluded with a pointed warning to Chastanet and his supporters: “So just tell Allen, Allen if you’re listening, you and your goons right? Do not mention my name. You have not heard me or seen me for three to four years. So please, do not mention my name…Allen we know you’re a liar…There’s no way under this God’s given earth that I want to be or have anything to do with that party anymore. So I would never ever apply for it.”
He further signaled ongoing discontent within the party: “The former chairman, Mr. Simon Sealy, just after me, he has resigned. The former general secretary has resigned from the party as well. And Allen, he has to see more resignations coming in because the people really fed up with Allen. And I’m being honest, if it was someone else, Right, if it was Bradley I would have supported the party but Allen is no leader.”
The clash exposes deep fissures within the UWP as the party prepares for the upcoming electoral cycle, raising questions about internal cohesion and leadership accountability.
