Override the branches at your peril — that was the warning MPs have sounded to Premier Ewart Brown’s as he paves the way to replace candidates deemed as “aberrations” by Progressive Labour Party H.Q.

Dr. Brown said polling of constituents would be factored in before the party unveiled its official slate picked to represent a balanced and winning ticket in an election expected to be called this summer. However one MP said Dr. Brown had won the leadership in October by putting the work in and getting his supporters to vote — but now he was in power he was tweaking the rules because he had not won the battle in the trenches to get his favourites in. “This will alienate and p*ss off a lot of people, replacing proven workers with some Johnny-come-lately will cause a lot of problems.”

And another MP, recently affirmed by their branch, said it would be “Russian roulette” for a leader to circumvent the usual process — unless there was consensus on the need for change.

“I would suggest anyone playing with the rules and the branches in the PLP is playing a very dangerous game. The grass roots galvanise support at the branch level. If it is perceived he has circumvented the constitution there will be those at grass roots level who become very angry and vocal.”

In a statement following the decision of Southampton West to back Marc Bean instead of sitting MP Randy Horton, the Premier said a combination of branch recommendations and polling will ensure candidates emerge from “a bottom up” process rather than a “top down” process. And he warned of “power brokers operating as a controlling clique”.

But one MP said the new selection practice where a five-person committee picked by the leader and the party chairman effectively decided who would run was the epitome of a “top down” process and attempts to remove the local choices to make way for those wanted by the party elite could spell trouble.

The MP said: “The branch chooses who the candidate should be — that’s why people are members. It would be an exceptional set of circumstances where the branch recommendations to the candidates committee would not be accepted.

“It you are going to change it to the five-person candidates committee where Dr. Brown says ‘I want my boy or my girl’ it makes it less accountable to the grass roots level.”

Most PLP branches in winnable seats have made their selections and the predicted cull of MPs loyal to the Jennifer Smith/Alex Scott wing of the party did not emerge.

Indeed Smith loyalists have prospered with Walter Roban getting the backing of the branch in the PLP safe seat of Pembroke East and Raymond Tannock re-emerging in the target seat of Southampton East Central.

And a third MP, who also spoke to The Royal Gazette on conditions of anonymity, said balking at the choice of the local branch risked alienating the very people expected to get the vote out and keep the branch running year round.

“I would caution if you lose the branch members you could find yourself in hot water. They have to pick who they want to pick.”

The MP said with smaller seats the local factor was becoming ever more important with both party workers and constituents wanting someone who lived in the seat or nearby who put the work in.

Commenting on the branch choices so far the MP said all the “home grown people” were being reselected while Mr. Horton, who lives in Hamilton Parish but who represents Southampton West had found himself caught out after taking his support for granted and flying off to watch cricket.

Yesterday Mr. Horton would not comment about his predicament in Southampton West where members voted eight to one in favour of his challenger.

He said would only say: “This is an internal Progressive Labour Party matter.”

One PLP source said Mr. Horton might be moved to one of the Somerset seats if a deal could be done.

However backbench MP Renee Webb said the Premier faced a dilemma in trying to get his strongest team out.

She said: “I can sympathise with Dr. Brown and I can understand why he wants to change the process because he needs all the help he can get being an agent of change.

“He needs a much stronger Cabinet than he has now. In order to move to the next level he needs visionaries, creative thinkers and analysts who understand where it is he wants to go.

“Quite frankly the Cabinet he has now is not strong enough. I understand why he wants change the process. I know it will alienate a lot of people but it is needed.”

Meanwhile it has also emerged that construction boss Zane DeSilva and the Premier’s Chief of Staff Wayne Caines are the front runners to fight the PLP’s corner in Southampton West Central — held by the United Bermuda Party by 129 votes last time.

MP: Don’t forget the grass roots