Category: Commentaries

               

By Fred Sturrup | GB News Editor | [email protected]

Recently during a high level meeting arranged by the Official Opposition in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, the Free National Movement, reportedly there was contention. The situation boiled over into an embarrassing, brutal physical altercation that left a noted party supporter seriously injured. Eye witnesses informed that he was savagely put upon by a fellow strong FNM proponent, who has differing views regarding Dr. Hubert Alexander Minnis who led the party to defeat last September.

The Hon. Michael Pintard is the sitting leader of the FNM. He attained such status in a democratic fashion, decisively. Dr. Minnis is the seemingly bitter former leader, who did not offer himself for the role when Pintard disposed of several others through the “in order” convention voting process.

As I pointed out in an earlier opinion piece it doesn’t appear that Dr. Minnis is going away. The view here is that he continues to grandstand, is not really respectful of Leader Pintard, and there is, accordingly,  this emotional spillover to his supporters. Thus the FNM party is in deep crisis. Pintard’s leadership is being assailed.

This is unfair and unprecedented in Bahamian politics.

This atrocious scenario never came about before because politicians and their followers of the past, though many of them were strong-minded, their characters did not lend themselves to violence against each other. 

The country’s first political party, the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) saw the leadership pass from Henry Milton Taylor to Lynden Oscar Pindling. Taylor and a few others were bitter about the new kids on the block taking over, but there was not much of a thought of challenging the new order.

After Pindling’s 30-plus years of leadership, Perry Gladstone Christie emerged as leader. There was the expected resentment and disappointment felt by those who preferred Dr. Bernard Nottage, but the party moved on handsomely. Christie delayed his time in PLP leadership, by failing to live up to his own reported time table to demit office. However, present PLP Leader and Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis bided his time, and look where he is today!

The second political party in the country which produced the first government, the United Bahamian Party, had a very smooth transition from the longtime leader Sir Roland Symonette  era to Sir Jeffery Johnstone.

The FNM itself,  went through many changes, in true democratic fashion, never burdened by anything such as inside troublemakers, apparently trying feverishly/violently to frustrate the leadership of one Michael Pintard.

This is not right. Let the man do his job in peace. 

From Sir Cecil Wallace to Sir Kendal Isaacs and back to Sir Cecil; to the three-time prime minister Hubert Alexander Ingraham; to Dr. Minnis; with interim leaders in place such as John Henry Bostwick, Cyril Tynes, and Tommy Turnquest; the FNM never faced anything even close to the present debacle.

It is therefore incumbent upon Pintard and the others within the FNM who have rationale, to immediately put the house in order. 

By Fred Sturrup | GB Editor | [email protected]

The present administration that governs the Commonwealth of the Bahamas is that of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis. There is an unusual development that is most disrespectful, I think, to the nation’s chief executive.

I have noted that certain governing politicians are getting into the custom of mouthing these words: “The Davis/Cooper administration” in reference to the present government, headed by one man. That man is the one who carried the Progressive Liberal Party to a resounding victory over the Hubert Alexander Minnis’ FNM administration. That is Philip “Brave” Davis.

Those who have referred to the government of Philip “Brave” Davis in that manner ought to cease forthwith. Now, let it be understood. I do not wish to accuse the parliamentarians who have disrespected their PM, perhaps innocently, of being devious or seeking to achieve a goal in an underhanded manner.  No, not in the least. 

However, it is appropriate to bring this lack of protocol to the attention of those parliamentarians and others.

I have been observing politics closely from the days of the United Bahamian Party (UBP) governance era.  Although Sir Stafford Sands was known to be quite influential, the UBP Government was Sir Roland Symonette’s administration. Then came the Pindling (Sir Lynden) administration (acknowledged as such despite his deputy being the great freedom fighter Arthur Hanna); the Ingraham (Hubert Alexander) administration; followed by the Christie (Perry Gladstone) administration; and the other Hubert (Alexander Minnis) administration.

The administration today is headed by one person; the one who appoints all of the Cabinet ministers, and who can also fire each of them.

In the USA, presently it is the Biden (President Joe) administration.  The Andrew Michael Holness administration runs the government in Jamaica. Horace Anthony Chang is the Deputy Prime Minister. It’s the Holness administration in that country, not the Holness/Chang administration.

Prime Minister Davis ought not have to speak to this local “political administration” matter at all. Deputy Prime Minister Cooper should personally take responsibility to ensure that this trend is stopped.  He knows that he works for the People of the Bahamas in the administration of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, the man who appointed him to high office. He knows that the leadership is not a shared one and that he works at the behest of Davis.

There is one chief, not two.

So, Cooper should politely speak to those parliamentarians who talk about a Davis/Cooper administration. Yes, he should have a private conversation with them.

The view held here is that there is no such thing as a joint administration leadership.

Indeed, there is one chief, not two!

By Fred Sturrup | GB News Editor | [email protected]

Jobs! Jobs! Jobs! 

The announcement by the Prime Minister Philip Davis led Government of the Bahamas, on Wednesday, that the Electra America Hospitality Group had purchased the Grand Lucaya properties in Grand Bahama for $100 million, heralded the great opportunities for gainful employment residents have been wishing, hoping for.

Based in Florida, Electra certainly came to the table with a bundle of credentials. Its marketing promo follows: “Electra America Hospitality Group (EAHG) is a unique joint venture between Electra America, a leading real estate operator and capital provider, and AKA, a leading provider of long-short term luxury accommodations. The partnership is designed to capitalize on dislocation in the hotel industry. Marrying Electra’s expertise in value-add investing and repositioning with AKA’s unique, design-driven philosophy and loyal customer base, EAHG generates premium returns for investors through the acquisition, renovation and management of well-located hotel resorts with upside potential in major U.S. markets.”

The Grand Lucayan properties certainly fit the bill, and all of The Bahamas, from a business perspective, is considered an extension of the U.S. market.
Moving about Grand Bahama in the days following the announcement, the name Philip Davis was heard spoken of highly by all and sundry. Frankly, although he is the maestro of the governing political party, the signing by Electra transcended politics.  Folks view the development as something joyful for all; and PM Davis and his associates in the Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Grand Bahama are accordingly complimented. 
As for the Prime Minister, he continues to overachieve, when one considers how he was perceived during the early years after he ascended to the helm of the Progressive Liberal Party and when the most recent general elections campaign began. His transformation to what he is today, has been nothing short of magnificent. There is no doubt that, as the head coach, he makes the jobs of his Cabinet Ministers so much easier.

The PM has orchestrated a comfort zone in this country not experienced throughout the entirety of the Free National Movement Dr. Hubert Minnis’ governance or during the latter portion of the Perry Christie administration’s second term. In less than a year, Davis has gone to a lofty height, whereby he can legitimately be talked positively about in the same FNM-Hubert Ingraham and PLP-Perry Christie conversation.  It was Ingraham who was the catalyst behind the emergence of Atlantis, that great resort empire on Paradise Island; and likewise Christie is to be thanked for the Baha Mar grand hospitality facility in New Providence.  In both cases, the day was saved for the country financially, as Atlantis and Baha Mar ushered in climates for economic security through thousands of steady, part-time and sourced out jobs.  For Grand Bahama, finally, there is the substantive sign of economic revitalization. Prime Minister Davis, is indeed charting his own course, but functioning similar to a phrase coined by Ingraham: “I say what I mean and mean what I say.”  Just a couple of months into his prime ministership, right in Grand Bahama during a press conference, Davis said it’s time for there to be much more than just talk about what needs to and will happen with Grand Bahama economically.  Well, his government is placing substantive action alongside the talk.

Grand Bahama is better off with his leadership.

QUALITY NATIONAL LEADERS

SHAPING UP WELL

A POLITICAL PARIAH?

By Fred Sturrup | GB News Editor | [email protected]

Dr. Hubert Minnis is considered to be a political pariah. He certainly fits the description of an outcast, much more so than any other leader in Bahamian political history, I submit.  This man has been rejected by the national voters in great numbers, and within the party he hangs on to, the Free National Movement (FNM), it is understood that the great majority wish he would just go away, resign, and get totally out of the picture.  Killarney could very well do with another representative. 

The fall from political grace that, in my view, is the largest aspect of his legacy, puts Dr. Minnis in the ignominious category of one. Given what happened under his watch; the questionable contracts, the inflated budgets, the attitude etc., I know of no other major party leader who bore as much or more public disgrace or shame.  

Let’s go through the list of political leaders in the modern Bahamas. For the now-governing Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), the leaders include Henry Milton Taylor, Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, Perry Gladstone Christie and Phillip “Brave” Davis.   The first government of the country, the United Bahamian Party (UBP), had Sir Roland Symonette and Godfrey Johnstone.  The Free PLP/FNM’s list is longer, inclusive of short-term leaders. The prominent chiefs were, of course, founding-leader Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield, Sir Kendal Isaacs and Hubert Ingraham. Then, there were Cyril Fountain, Cyril Tynes, Henry Bostwick, Tommy Turnquest and Michael Pintard (currently in charge).  All of them, their faults noted, were thought to be honourable men.

What about Dr. Hubert Minnis?  The truth be told, there is the view that he sours the FNM.  And, he won’t go away.

In an earlier commentary in GB News, it was predicted that Dr. Minnis would be a great obstacle to Pintard’s leadership. He seems determined to undermine the younger politician who has been widely accepted by FNMs across the length and breadth of this nation. Pintard is certainly more dignified.  The antics of Dr. Minnis are disgusting.  He lost the election of 2021 and the FNM opted to change him and go with another at the helm. That was the logical conclusion. His decisions in leadership, for the most part, were not sound ones at all.  

Think about it for a moment.  Dr. Minnis could still be the executive leader of this country. His Cabinet Ministers could still be moving about in the political style befitting their portfolios. In particular, they could still be earning their salaries. Cabinet Ministers each lost more than $60,000 because of the decision made by Dr. Minnis to call an early election, September 16, of last year.  He dealt serious blows to his party and the pockets of ministers, other parliamentarians and supporters with lucrative contracts.

Yet he sticks around, seemingly making every effort to upstage the sitting FNM Leader Pintard. In that earlier commentary, I warned Pintard about what he was likely to face in Dr. Minnis. It is not a pretty scene for the FNM. On the one hand there is Leader Pintard, trying valiantly to make his party relevant with the voters once again.  On the other hand, Dr. Minnis appears to be disdainful of Pintard and his status in the country as Her Majesty’s Loyal Official Opposition Leader. 

The time has come for those who care deeply for the FNM to take a strong stand alongside Pintard, and insist that Dr. Minnis moves on. If not, a fractured party will be the result and the FNM will not be able to go to the people for voting support as a unified body.

By Fred Sturrup | GB News Editor | [email protected]

National Security Minister Wayne Munroe is deemed by many to be out of order for comments made regarding a plea agreement which enabled a man recently convicted of having intercourse with a minor to receive a prison term of just four years.
He was quoted:”If I was advising the accused and someone gets seven years for raping somebody, I wouldn’t be advising my client to agree to four years for unlawful intercourse. I would say that if we go to court, you would say to the judge, “He didn’t rape her. She consented.” A release from the Ministry of National Security claimed that Minister Munroe was regretful that his comments “caused concern.” His defense continued with the following: “When I provide my analysis of a legal matter, as I have done in recent interviews, I do draw upon decades of experience practicing law.”  
Indeed, Munroe is a noted attorney; but in his capacity as Minister of National Security, he does not have the luxury to act or think, only, as a lawyer. Protocol dictates that he functions, in particular while in public, in the interest of his ministry. He seems, based on his comments, sympathetic to the convicted individual, and not very much concerned that a child under the age of 16 has been interfered with sexually, her innocence violated. Quite frankly, at that age, she is unable to give legal consent.
From throughout this country and the wider Caribbean Region, reportedly the outcry against Munroe has been great. He thus sits, it is submitted, as a cancer in the Cabinet of the Most Honourable Prime Minister Philip Davis. Cancer should be removed.
PM Davis is batting on a really fine wicket. His detractors are hard pressed to criticize him with any sense of logic. His cabinet ministers can be his downfall though. Voters have long memories.  I suggest that the prime minister takes his mind back to the 2002-2007 first Progressive Liberal Party governance term of Perry Gladstone Christie. The economy was booming, things were going well in the nation; but Christie lost respect when he failed to handle properly, in the view held here, the BAIC (Bahamas Agriculture and Industrial Corporation) debacle and several other national matters of great concern.
The same can happen to Davis four and a half years down the road.
PM Davis, I urge you to remember how Sir Lynden Pindling functioned as prime minister, especially during those early years of a quarter of a century of leadership.  I mention for emphasis the names of Simeon Bowe and Ervin Knowles. There was the case of the PVC pipes. It was a huge controversy, although Bowe was not thought to be personally involved. Bowe was a dear friend of the then prime minister and one of the heroes of the eastern district. He stepped down from his ministry post, however, so the government could move forward without that baggage.
In the case of Knowles, a matter regarding a contract for BAIC was his downfall. Just like Bowe, he was very close to Sir Lynden, and not known to have been the culprit. However, it was on his watch and convention dictated the honourable path. Knowles took it.
This controversy Munroe is now involved in, is highly sensitive and he is in a quandary of his own doing. The matter won’t die.