The NDC is managing to attract on its 2026 Election Platform persons from NNP and D’Movement
Within the past week, some of the political activist of the two main opposition parties on the island – The New National Party (NNP) of Emmalin Pierre and The Democratic People’s Movement (DPM) of Peter David – have crossed over to the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) of Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell.
Two of the figures appeared on the NDC platform at its self-styled “Mini Rally” held Sunday night at Café in the rural St Andrew South-east Constituency where Opposition Leader and NNP Political Boss Emmalin Pierre is locked in a battle with Education Minister Senator David Andrew.
Longstanding Polling Division Captain in the village of Crochu for NNP, “Brother Gregory” who has worked with the party for over 25 years has defected to join Congress while the Public Relations Officer of DPM, Dixie-Ann Victor has abandoned her colleagues to join the team of Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell.
Another major development for NDC in St Andrew South-east was the appearance on the David Andrew platform of two former elected Members of Parliament for the Constituency – Cuthbert McQueen who won the seat in the 1999 general election and Kenrick Fullerton who defeated him four years later while running on the NDC ticket.
However, one day before these political developments took place, reports surfaced about a former key aide of former NNP Prime Minister Keith Mitchell deciding to give support to his brother who will be a candidate for NDC in the upcoming general election.
Twenty-four years ago, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, retired Superintendent of Police Anthony DeGale was introduced to a group of private sector businessmen by former Prime Minister Keith Mitchell as his new National Security Czar.
The meeting took place as the island was struggling to recover from the killer Hurricane.
The then Grenadian leader called on the dapper-looking DeGale who is originally from Cherry Hill in his St George North-west Constituency to address the gathering on the way forward with security matters for Grenada, Carriacou & Petite Martinique.
Mitchell had plucked out DeGale from among the ranks following the dismal performance of the top brass of the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF) including Commissioner of Police, the late Fitzroy Bedeau and a host of Assistant Commissioners of Police like Smith Roberts, the late Maurice Darius and Dowlin Bartholomew.
For the next several years, Supt DeGale was a powerhouse in the Police Force and was often seen in the company of Keith Mitchell in many outings around the island.
The one-time head of the RGPF Special Branch is planning to return home to help his brother – Nigel DeGale, the former school head teacher and newly elected Congress Candidate as he seek to capture Mitchell’s St George North-west constituency that Mitchell had dominated since the 1984 general election.
In an exclusive interview with THE NEW TODAY, Nigel DeGale accused the former Grenadian leader of treating his brother badly which resulted in him quitting the Police Force.
“That man is a demon as far as my brother is concerned,” he quipped.
The ex-school principal does not see his brother’s presence on the campaign trail with him given his well-known past association with Mitchell and NNP affecting his chances on Polling Day.
He said that his brother “fell out of grace with Keith Mitchell” and was forced to travel abroad to live in the United States.
He charged that the modus operandi of the former NNP boss is to use people and then dump them.
“My brother parted ways with Keith Mitchell a long time. He is in the USA 10 years now and had cut ties with that man.
“Keith is a very ungrateful man that used a lot of people – men, women, children for his end and then dump them away – a whole list of people he did that – my brother was one of the victims of Keith Mitchell.
According to Nigel, when he was invited to join Congress the first person he discussed that with was his brother.
“He said, go for it Nigel, go for it – you will do well, he said, adding that one on his biggest defenders in the face of attacks on Facebook following his decision to join Congress is the said brother.
“Right now he’s defending me on Facebook – he is sending out a lot of posts and so on supporting his brother so he is on my side. He is coming down just now to work with me.
“He was a right hand man for Keith (Mitchell), now he is a right hand man for me. I welcome him because of his experience and so on and he is good in Security so he has my back.
DeGale charged that Keith Mitchell did not treat his brother good in the end despite all the support he had given in the past to the former Prime Minister.
“Keith didn’t treat the boy good. They dismissed the boy in a kind of way because he was supposed to go and study and they tell him if he had to study he had to resign.
The NDC Caretaker Candidate charged that Keith Mitchell was the one who orchestrated that plot against his brother who was simply trying to go overseas to obtain a Bachelor’s degree.
“He was treated very bad – my brother is bitter. He was forced to cut ties with Keith because of how he treated him – forcing him to resign his job when they could have given him no pay leave. So my brother was hurt after doing so much for that man,” he said.
“My brother is behind me – my sister in St Vincent is behind me and all my relatives are behind me and they are supporting me and my brother will be coming down to watch my back and to be with me as he has experience in that area (Personal Security).
Asked when the retired Supt DeGale is due on the island, Nigel DeGale said: “Very soon. As soon as the date is set he is coming. As they say election is so and so my brother will be here to be on my side with me.
DeGale admitted that his brother did come back to Grenada from the USA for a few elections in the past to give support to Keith Mitchell and NNP.
He said it is common for family members to be divided along political lines with one set giving active support to one political party and others supporting a different political organisation.
He pointed out that he himself never voted for Keith Mitchell and NNP over the years.
“So not because my brother was in that party (NNP) because of his job and everything I was never and I never voted once for the NNP.
“I love my brother – his party was his party, my vote was always a secret business … and I never voted once for the NNP, I never liked the man (Keith Mitchell) – the leader of that party and I could not support him and his party.
According to DeGale, he voted twice in his life – the first was in 1984 for the left-leaning but now defunct Maurice Bishop Patriotic Movement (MBPM) in 1984 and 38 years later for Congress because of its commitment to pay public officers their long outstanding Pension in-keeping with a high court ruling.
He said over the years he never got involved in frontline politics, did not attend political mass rallies of any parties on the island in keeping with his status as a public officer.