Anesia Baptiste gets mother’s support but not party membership

by Bria King Fri, Oct 12, 2012

Octavia Richards, mother of politician Anesia Baptiste, says she supports her daughter’s decision to form the Democratic Republican Party (DRP), but she is not yet a member.{{more}}

“Well, not right now, but I’m looking at it,” Richards told SEARCHLIGHT on Monday, when asked if she was a DRP member.

Baptiste was fired as a New Democratic Party senator in April, formed the DRP in August, and is hoping to contest the next general elections, constitutionally due in 2015.

Baptiste, in the same interview on Monday, commented on her mother’s response, saying: “She is answering you and she is saying that, because she hasn’t filled out a form as yet.

“But I know she is in the party. She has been giving me advice and all kind of thing, telling me about persons who say they have to call me and things like that.

“I think she answered you like that because you ask her if she is a member and she knows she hasn’t actually filled out a form,” Baptiste further said.

She added that her mother’s response shows that her mother makes her own decisions and is not supporting merely because of their biological relationship.

Richards pointed out that the party was still in the foundation stages and that she will make her decisions as time goes on.

Richards also said she is not pleased with the manner in which lawyers Maia Eustace, Bertram Commissiong QC and Keith Scotland informed Baptiste that they no longer wanted to work on her lawsuit against the government.

On October 4, the lawyers informed Baptiste that they wanted to be released from representing her in relation to the 16 charges brought against her by the government, for comments she made while a public servant, as part of the “Vote No” campaign in the run up to the 2009 referendum on constitution reform.

The lawyers’ announcement came one court day before the hearing on Monday.

Richards said she did not feel good about the situation and it is her opinion that the lawyers’ decision was made from a political standpoint.

“If they want to do something like this, they have their rights and freedom to do that, but do you wait until just a couple days before the case?” she said.