Late Prime Minister David Thompson’s widow Mara says she has not decided whether she will try to replace him as the Member of Parliament for St John.
“I will have to give it some thought,” she said yesterday, when asked whether she would seek the Democratic Labour Party’s (DLP) nomination as its candidate for the by-election triggered by Thompson’s passing.
She admitted: “I don’t know how to answer that question.”
Several St John residents have told the DAILY NATION that the widow would be the ideal candidate for St John, a constituency which Thompson represented in the House of Assembly for more than 20 years.
They said her personality was very much like his: she was humble, down to earth and genuinely cared about people. They also spoke about Mrs Thompson’s involvement in community projects in St John alongside the former Prime Minister.
A date is yet to be set for the by-election, but there is speculation about who will seek the nomination for the DLP. One senior DLP official, who asked not to be identified, said he believed Thompson would have wanted his wife to play a political role.
Outside of Thompson, there was no-one who knew and understood the needs of St John as Mara Thompson did, he argued.
However, political analyst Peter Wickham said he would have to be persuaded that Mrs Thompson was interested in a political role.
He told the DAILY NATION he had never known her to be politically minded and he would be surprised “if she has that interest”.
Mrs Thompson and daughters Oya and Osa Marie, as well as Thompson’s mother Margaret Knight, were among the people in the visitors’ gallery at the House of Assembly yesterday when parliamentarians paid tribute to the late Prime Minister.
During the session, certain statements made by former Prime Minister and Opposition leader Owen Arthur drew an angry response from members in the public gallery who viewed them as distasteful.
Thompson’s widow also reportedly sent a note to the Clerk of Parliament Pedro Eastmond expressing her concern about Arthur’s contribution, while stating “Owen should recognise what a tribute is”.
