Opposition Leader Ralph Gonsalves has declined to offer any public explanation for the “yellowwash” that his Unity Labour Party (ULP) suffered at the polls on Nov. 27, losing 14-1 to the New Democratic Party.
Gonsalves said at a press conference in Kingstown that the opposition will oppose matters that are not in the interest of the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, propose alternatives, expose where there is patent wrongdoing, unfairness or injustice, and seek to depose, constitutionally, legally, the government.
Gonsalves, 79, has returned to opposition after 25 years as prime minister.
During the press conference, a journalist noted that some people have praised Gonsalves as being so visionary that he appears to see around corners. The journalist asked him how he was not able to see the landslide defeat coming.
“Well, sometimes, … as the wheels of competitive politics turn, you win some, you lose some, and we are analysing our loss.”
Gonsalves said he had seen a lot of experts “who do not have the interest of Ralph or the ULP at heart” giving various analyses.
“But I’m not going to involve myself in a public analysis as to the reasons why I think that the ULP lost and the NDP won,” Gonsalves said.
“What I’m interested in is what I’ve spoken about earlier, … I lay down the line of march for the party, and very critically, under the rubric of turning the setback into an advance which involves renewal centrally and defending our gains and further advancing them in the communities. And you will hear, as time goes on, details in that regard.”
Gonsalves was the only ULP candidate to win a seat in the election, which saw the other eight ULP incumbents, as well as six others seeking to become MPs, rejected by the electorate.
The defeat came two days after Gonsalves urged voters to cast their ballots for the ULP candidate in their respective constituencies, saying that, in doing so, they “will get two for the price of one” — the constituency representative and he, as prime minister.
Asked this week why he thinks that the electorate rejected all the candidates but him, Gonsalves said:
“I’m not going to do academic analysis or any analysis in the science of psephology, which is a science of elections, in the public domain.”
He said he would advise the party leadership and the party as a whole “as to areas in which we must do our renewal.
“… whatever answer I give you upfront for your question is neither here nor there. The proof of the pudding is in the eating … and you will see us in 2030.”
Gonsalves was told that it would be good to have something to measure it against.
“… let you measure it against this historically: in 1989, the NDP won, 67% of the vote and all the seats. In 1994, five years later, they fell by 12 percentage points … to 55% of the vote, and in 1998 they fell further to 45% of the vote. In other words, in nine years, they fell by 22 percentage points, which is a significant fall.”
The opposition leader said that if the NDP now falls by 12 percentage points in a five-year period, it will only attain 44% the votes in the next election.
“So, I can talk to you as a student of history. You want me to get involved in speculation and public analysis? I’m not writing that paper,” Gonsalves said.
He was, however, told that he was being asked to comment as a political scientist.
“You’re not hearing that one from me. You will see my actions, and you’ll be able to learn therefrom as to what I think,” Gonsalves said.
Speaking earlier, he said he wanted to assure the people of SVG, the region and globally “that I am up to leading in this new task, this new role that I have.
“And as you notice, my head is very clear on all the issues, absolutely clear. I have no vanities concerning my particular role,” he said.
Gonsalves said he had read comments by people opposed to him and his party that he was “a transitional figure, and they equate that with being temporising.
“Well, if they know the English language properly, and if they have any idea of concepts, both in theory and in their practical manifestation, they would know that you can transition to a higher plane and a deeper form of linkage with the people and to regain the complete confidence of the bulk of the population, which is an entirely different matter than temporising.”
He said that temporising is marking time, and people confuse that with other concepts, adding that neither he nor the ULP is about to mark time.
“We’re not going to just occupy the political crease. We are at the political crease to score runs, to extend the metaphor within the context of what I’ve just outlined, both for the party and the opposition itself, in the parliamentary opposition.”
Absolutely full of himself and supremely delusional at his age. What an embarrassment the “world boss” has become.
Go home Ralph! Go home & stay home! You cannot possibly be thinking anything about electoral politics in 2030 🫤🫤🫤🫤🫤
Gonsalves’s reaction to his party’s 14-1 defeat is arrogant and evasive. He outright refuses to explain the historic loss publicly, dismissing analysts and treating a national rejection as a private party matter. This shows a leader utterly unwilling to be accountable to the people who just voted him out.
He hides by deflecting. Instead of humility, he gives a history lecture and corrects word definitions—a vain attempt to seem intellectual while avoiding the real issue. He spins the catastrophe as a mere “setback”, proving he is more focused on controlling the narrative than understanding the voters’ message.
Ultimately, he acts like a ruler, not a servant. His promise that “you will see us in 2030” ignores the present verdict. After 25 years in power, his priority remains his own political future, not learning from a decisive public rebuke.
The quotes from Ralph shows why he lost the election: Everything was and still is I, I, I as if no one else is there and have different opinions. Why weren’t these plans he now have as the opposition leader were not in his sight around the corner when was prime minister?
Mr. Corner Man is now looking down the lanes at 2030. Will he still be around and can be become “Sleepy Ralph on the job then?
Ralph take your stick and red cap and go home to Eloise. You need some rest!