Ian Pinard tearfully resigned as the Member of Parliament for the Soufriere Constituency last night

Ian Pinard emotionally and tearfully resigned as the Member of Parliament for the Soufriere Constituency last night, at a special meeting of the Labour Party held at the Soufriere Constituency office.
 
Pinnard said he made that decision in light of allegations made against him, and he tendered his resignation as a member of parliament to the Speaker of the House of Assembly yesterday. He stated “I have written to the Hon. Speaker of the House of Assembly earlier this evening tendering my resignation as a Member of the Parliament of Dominica.”
 
An emotional Pinard said the matter is having an enormous impact on him emotionally, psychologically and physically, and has prevented him from functioning to the best of his ability as an MP. He pointed out that he did not want the people of the constituency to suffer because of the process ahead of him, although he said he knows he will be exonerated.
 
He added, “Furthermore, I have been advised that I ought not to underestimate the impact this entire episode is having on my mental and physical health and wellbeing. I have been advised that I need to pay attention to my health and to the demands of this case during the coming weeks and months”.
 
“Accordingly, I met earlier today with the Honorable Prime Minister and informed him of my decision to resign my seat in Parliament as Parliamentary Representative for the constituency of Soufriere. I believe strongly that the institution of Parliament should not be dragged into the happenings & atmosphere that will accompany events pertaining to my case, over the coming weeks and months.”
 
Pinard recently resigned as Minister of Public Works, allegedly because of the said allegations. In the December 2014 general election, Pinnard won by 1,326 votes, beating his rival Higgs Adams of the United Workers Party, who received 822 votes. The Soufriere Constituency consists of the communities of Soufriere, Scottshead, Gallion and Pointe Michel. A by-election will be held in the constituency within the next 90 days.