Vellos Wins Big, But PUP Corozal Faces Bigger Battle Within

The People’s United Party went into Sunday’s Corozal Municipal Convention looking for a mayoral candidate. It came out with a clear winner, and a much clearer picture of the divisions inside its Corozal ranks. Three-time mayor Rigoberto Vellos crushed newcomer Shajarie Rogers by more than six hundred votes, handing Team Rigo a commanding victory and dealing a sharp blow to Team Rogers, which had the backing of Area Representative Thea Garcia-Ramirez. But the day was about more than numbers. Supporters shouted, tempers rose, and emotions spilled over as rival camps battled openly over the future direction of the party in Corozal. Now, with municipal elections ahead, the PUP must find a way to bring its people back together after one of the most heated internal contests the municipality has seen in years. News Five’s Paul Lopez reports.

 

PUP Supporter #1

“Honestly, he is doing better for the town. And I hope it can be much better.”

 

PUP Supporter #2

“We dah all PUP. I want make Johhny say that. What is the problem with his people. We dah all the f**king people. I don’t know what is the issue with them.”

 

 

Rigoberto Vellos, PUP Mayoral Candidate, Corozal Town

“A hard one. A hard battle. Sometimes you get tested to the extreme and this was one time we were taken to the extreme.”

 

Tears, tension, and sharp political divides marked Sunday’s People’s United Party Corozal Municipal Convention. Three-time Corozal Mayor Rigoberto Vellos defeated political newcomer Shajarie Rogers by a decisive margin, securing one thousand, seven hundred ninety-nine votes to Rogers’ one thousand, one hundred seventy-five. For Vellos, the convention was unnecessary from the start. He argued that his track record should have spoken clearly enough to avoid an internal contest.

 

Rigoberto Vellos

“Definitely, that is what Is driving the majority to come out and vote today. They know I have worked extremely hard for them, hence the reason why they did not agree to a convention.”

 

Rogers began the day sounding optimistic about her chances. Her confidence hinged on a finely tuned machinery and the support she had from Corozal Bay Area Representative Thea Garcia-Ramirez.

 

Shajarie Rogers, PUP Mayoral Aspirant, Corozal Town

“Honorable Thea has a right. She is a voter in Corozal Bay and at the end of the day, she had also given you guys an interview where she rightly stated that she will work with any team. So, I believe that at the end of the day she will work with any team that wins.”

 

With Vellos and his full slate now victorious, can Garcia mend the strained relationships that emerged from Sunday’s convention? The taunting Team Rigo chants were deafening as we spoke with her upon her exit from the voting area.

 

Thea Garcia-Ramirez, Area Representative, Corozal Bay

“I am a PUP, I am a PUP Area Rep so I have to ensure that I come out here and I try to vote in the convention.”

 

Paul Lopez

“When you hear the energy behind you right now, what does it make you think?”

 

Thea Garcia-Ramirez

“All I hear is PUP Paul.”

 

Paul Lopez

“I hear Rigo.”

 

Thea Garcia-Ramirez

“It is PUP. I calculate that we are going to have about 3200 voters today.”

 

Ramirez was close. Three thousand, four hundred and twenty-five registered voters participated in Sunday’s exercise. The majority rejected Rogers and her slate. But was Sunday’s result also a rejection of Ramirez’s influence, and did the convention leave PUP supporters in Corozal more divided than united? We spoke with Party Chairman, Henry Charles Usher.

 

Henry Charles Usher, Chairman, PUP

“Well I think it is always good for the people to decide who they want to represent them. I think conventions are good, they are healthy. You know you will have this what you would call coming together after the convention. You have to come together and that is what we will do.”

 

Team Rogers conceded and vowed to work with team Rigo going into the municipal elections.  And in the months ahead, there will be plenty of work to do to rebuild trust and restore unity.

 

Rigoberto Vellos

“We went into a convention that was not necessary and I hope that after this they can join me, me and my team to work together. It is time for us to rebuild our own party and as young leaders people expect that form us. I am happy, a bit emotional. But it all comes with victory. So I am very comfortable.”

 

Paul Lopez

“Is any of this vindication for you?”

 

Rigoberto Vellos

“I won’t comment on that.”

 

In another twist, Councilor Leslie Rodriguez elected to left Team Rigo camp to run with Team Rogers, but the gamble did not pay off. Team Rigo’s replacement candidate, Hugo Gonzalez, went on to lead the councilor’s polls. Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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