By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

UNITED Democratic Party Leader Greg Moss yesterday unveiled his party’s first four candidates - himself included - to contest the upcoming general election.

The Marco City MP said that the party is committed amidst rumours that a “division” in the party led to its second name change.

Mr Moss, leader of the party formerly known as the United People’s Movement (UPM), announced that he would again be contesting the Marco City seat, a seat he won while previously running on the PLP’s ticket, and that Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) President John Pinder will be contesting the Fox Hill seat.

Mr Moss also announced that Bishop Margo Burrows would be contesting the Yamacraw seat, and that attorney Edmund Russell would be contesting the Central Grand Bahama seat. Yesterday’s announcement, Mr Moss said, represents the start of the “second stage” of the party’s campaign, with more candidates slated to be revealed throughout next month.

However, an issue that arose during the press conference at the British Colonial Hilton Hotel yesterday morning was the circumstances surrounding the change of the party’s name from the United People’s Movement (UPM) to the United Democratic Party (UDP).

The former name was the result of a late-2016 merger of Mr Moss’ first incarnation of the United Democratic Party, which he launched on his own after resigning from the PLP in 2015, and Mr Pinder’s and former Senator John Bostwick Jr’s The People’s Movement, which was conceived out of an intense opposition to the June 7 gender equality referendum.

Mr Moss explained that the reason for the name change was not due to a division in the party, but rather because “two or three persons,” after having left the UPM, “sought to create a level of confusion that we just were not willing to accommodate or be a part of.”

Mr Moss said that after they left the party, those persons registered a new political organisation under the name The People’s Movement, the name of Mr Pinder’s former organisation prior to the merger with Mr Moss’ group. Mr Moss said such a move would have only led to unnecessary confusion.

“...Our response is just this: we will maintain our position as the people’s movement, we will go after resolving the issues in this country for the good of the people, but we will not enter into a confused state,” Mr Moss added. “We will not allow the electorate to be confused by what they’ve done. So we have reverted to one of constituent names, which was and is the UDP. So we’re the same people, we’ve just taken another one of our constituent names to avoid the confusion that those other two or three individuals tried to create, and we’re moving on.”

Nonetheless, Mr Moss said yesterday’s unveiling of the four candidates demonstrates the party’s commitment to ushering in a style of governance that is contrary to the status quo.

“We are committed to seeking out persons of integrity, iconoclastic leaders, dedicated to ridding our country once and for all of the systemic corruption and abject failures that has plagued us on every level,” he said in a statement. “We are simply not about governance as usual.”

“…We have chosen people from among you who have pledged to serve you. We have chosen your mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers, persons who represent you and understand the unique needs of Bahamians as we transition into a global market and society. Persons who will birth this new Bahamas.

“The (UDP) is about serving. It’s our civic, spiritual and human responsibility. Our movement is one of inclusion. We are reaching out to all independent candidates and other persons of conviction who we believe have been and still are unswerving in their commitment to the service of the Bahamian people.”

In December, the party launched its official campaign for the 2017 general election with the release of a 21-page synopsis of the party’s vision document.

The plan contains extensive legislative reform proposals and several ideas aimed at bettering Bahamian society. Among some of its key elements, the UDP’s document promises to protect members of the press and strengthen freedom of information legislation.

At the time, party officials said they intend to enact a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in line with the model FOI Bill produced by the Commonwealth Secretariat and approved by the Commonwealth Law Ministers since 1999. The party will also look to introduce anti-corruption legislation, strengthen press freedoms and freedoms of expression.

The party’s document also noted that it will seek to introduce term limits for the post of prime minister and make the judiciary more independent.