As the country’s upcoming general election draws near, United Progressive Party (UPP) leader Jamale Pringle has made a landmark pledge to voters, promising strict public accountability from the first day of his administration’s term through its final day if his party secures victory.
Speaking to a packed rally of supporters in St. Philip’s South on Monday evening, Pringle emphasized that voters have every right to hold a UPP government to the commitments laid out in the party’s official election manifesto. “You must hold us accountable for our promises to you and for every cent of your tax dollars,” Pringle told the gathered crowd, framing his party’s governance plan around clear, measurable timelines that stretch from the critical first 100 days in office through the full five-year parliamentary term.
The opposition leader positioned this accountability vow as a direct rebuke of the incumbent administration, which he argued has failed to deliver on its own past promises to voters. Pringle stressed that the pledge is core to the UPP’s broader mission to build a transparent, public-centered government that answers directly to the people it serves, rather than operating behind closed doors.
Pringle also used the campaign event to detail the origins of the UPP’s newly released manifesto, noting that every policy included in the document was shaped by months of extensive, grassroots consultations with a diverse cross-section of national society. These consultations included input from single parents, working-class citizens, retired pensioners, local business owners, and community leaders from every region of the country.
During those outreach sessions, Pringle explained, citizens consistently raised urgent, everyday concerns that have gone unaddressed under the current government. Top issues included the soaring cost of living, crumbling road infrastructure, ongoing access gaps for clean drinking water, and the alarming rise in gun-related violent crime. Participants also highlighted unmet needs in healthcare access, affordable housing, and broad economic strain facing working and middle-class households.
According to Pringle, the final UPP manifesto directly integrates this public input, building concrete, actionable policy plans to tackle every one of the key challenges shared by citizens. “We were able to craft a manifesto that addresses these things with clear plans on how we will fix them,” he said, describing the document as a truly people-driven blueprint for national governance that reflects the on-the-ground experiences and top priorities of everyday Antiguans and Barbudans.
With election day quickly approaching, Pringle closed his remarks by urging all UPP supporters to turn out in force to cast their ballots, reiterating that every one of the party’s pledges will remain open to full public scrutiny throughout their term if the electorate grants the UPP a mandate to govern.