Elvis Charles, the Unity Labour Party’s (ULP) candidate for Central Kingstown constituency, has been described by his opponent, Senator St.Clair Leacock of the New Democratic Party (NDP), as “ungrateful” and “hypocritical”.{{more}}

Leacock, heavily criticised by Prime Minister Dr.Ralph Gonsalves on Thursday, September 16, for attending a ULP meeting at Green Hill, had his chance last Thursday evening to respond to both Charles and the Prime Minister on a platform of his own at the same location.

Leacock, in his address, explained why he had attended the ULP political meeting at Green Hill the week before.

He said he wanted Charles to see him “in live and living colour.”

“Because when he could not pay his school fees, he came to me to pay them. And, I want to know since when the ULP was more important to him than to me. Because before I went to sleep and before I wake up he was wanting assistance from me to pay his education fee.

“I find him to be damn ungrateful and hypocritical,” said Leacock, adding that he would leave the matter at that.

With regard to Prime Minister Gonsalves, Leacock said he will take the moral high road.

Leacock stated that Gonsalves needs a lot of prayers.

The Vice President of the NDP said he stood before Gonsalves because “week after week, month after month, night after night, day after day, my eighty-eight-year-old mother keep asking me ‘what does Ralph know about’ she ‘pickney’.”

“The only problem that I have of the nastiness and the dirtiness that he says about me, is that if it had been said by anyone in the crowd, I would not have felt so bad. But when those things come from the mouth of an accused rapist you feel terrible,” said Leacock.

Leacock said he plans to tell the public other things about Gonsalves, but he will leave that for the market square or Sion Hill.

“I have worked and my parents have worked too hard [to reach] where I am now to be destroyed by a self confessed foul mouthed individual. Not me said so, he said so,” said Leacock.

Gonsalves, at the ULP’s Green Hill meeting, told the crowd that when Leacock was President of the Football Federation he wanted to hold on to that office, even though he knew he was running for politics.

At that meeting Leacock had drawn close to the front of the platform, but Gonsalves said this was not an act of courage, but “barefaced cowardice”. Gonsalves also stated that if Leacock thought that he was going to get “a pass” because he (Leacock) was present, he was mistaken.

Meanwhile, on Thursday evening, Leacock spoke mainly of the need for representation in Central Kingstown. To this end, he said he is a politician who doesn’t consider coming to a constituency a burden, a problem or a challenge.

“It is my life. Even if I was not a candidate, I would still be in my constituency and among you the people,” said Leacock. (HN)