“We’ll Have to Hit the Streets”: Opposition Leader Calls for Nationwide Mobilization Against NDP Amendments

A One News SVG collage featuring Former Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves and supporters at a political rally in November 2025.

By Val Matthias. Updated 5:55 p.m., Wednesday, April 15, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).

The Opposition Leader has issued a rallying cry for citizens to take to the streets in protest against constitutional amendments proposed by the New Democratic Party (NDP). Declaring that “we’ll have to hit the streets,” he warned that the government’s move to retroactively change the constitution and the Representation of the People Act represents a direct assault on democracy and judicial independence.

The amendments, introduced by NDP leader Dr. Godwin Friday, would redefine “foreign power or state” to exclude Commonwealth countries such as Canada. This change would retroactively validate the nominations and elections of Dr. Friday and Fitzgerald Bramble, both of whom face petitions challenging their eligibility due to Canadian citizenship. The Opposition Leader argues that such legislation interferes with a live court case, undermines the rule of law, and sets a dangerous precedent for governance.

In his appeal, he urged institutions including the Christian Council, the Bar Association, trade unions, the business community, and civil society to form a united front. He emphasized that mobilization must extend across all sectors of society from villages and towns to schools, hospitals, police stations, factories, and even among youth on the block.

Calling on the Governor General to refuse assent to the bills if passed, he insisted that the courts must be allowed to decide the pending petitions. “You don’t play the game and then change the rules after,” he said, stressing that the amendments serve self-preservation for Dr. Friday, Bramble, and the NDP rather than the public interest.

With this clarion call, the Opposition Leader has transformed a legal dispute into a nationwide protest movement, setting the stage for mass demonstrations aimed at defending constitutional integrity and the separation of powers.

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