Chair Seleny Villanueva Says P.U.P. is Mending Rift in Caye Caulker

It’s a political hat trick for Seleny Villanueva, who’s been re-elected as Caye Caulker’s chairperson for the third time in a row. Running with her ‘Generation Seven’ slate, Villanueva secured five out of seven seats—once again proving her staying power on the island. But this win didn’t come without controversy. With Mayor Wally Nunez backing Villanueva and Area Rep Andre Perez throwing his support behind P.U.P. candidate Celina Jimenez, the campaign trail got a little tense. We caught up with Villanueva to talk about the political divide—and how she plans to lead amid the island’s shifting alliances.

 

Seleny Villanueva, Chair, Caye Caulker

 “It’s humbling and a blessing to know that my Caye Caulker community believe in my leadership. And it’s a role that I take on very seriously. I wanna be a voice for everybody across the board, especially those who are not being heard and in  the past  two terms, I believed our team have worked hard and we will do the same this time. I know I’ve been a P.U.P. supporter. Everybody knows that in my community and I think outside of my community. I’ve been an Andre Perez, honorable of Andre Perez supporter- campaigner. I can’t speak for my team, but I do not understand why we had to have, personally, I don’t know why we had to have a P.U.P. slate and an independent slate. I know the Honorable Minister had that opportunity to choose his preference, and he did. That’s his prerogative. But nonetheless, as a P.U.P., I’m here to work with. My area representative and to work with our area representative and our Prime Minister because when it comes to Caye Caulker Caye Caulker should know no boundaries, not even color. We should put everything aside. And at the end of the day, when it comes to development and prosperity for islands, we should just push forward. And I’ve, mentioned that last night to my area rep, I said, we need to put everything aside and work together.”