The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

THOSE who follow and support political groups have an agenda. The distinguishing factors that set them apart are pinpointed by what they allow, what they support, and how blind they are to their leaders inconsistencies and indiscretions. The way in which these differences are perceived by the Bahamian people on May 7, 2012, will not only determine who will lead for the next five years, but how serious the electorate has become about politics at many levels.

At the heart of this discussion are the perceived differences between Hubert Alexander Ingraham and Perry Gladstone Christie, two men who are very close friends but who are as different as yellow and red.

There are many good things to say about both men, but any one who has observed for any length of time will agree that these "things" fall into two distinct categories; objective and subjective. Mr Ingraham leads his party and Mr Christie is led by his. Ironically, most observers agree that Mr Christie would be a better leader if he would take some cues from Mr Ingraham and the same would apply to Mr Ingraham.

Mr Ingraham has been given the label of dictator by some in his party and many in the PLP, but Mr Christie is known as a nice person, a person who has a lot of empathy for the persons who follow him.

With these two diametrically opposite personalities in such a small demographic, the choice between the two should be clear, since Bahamians are known as "nice people". However, the past 40 years has informed the Bahamian people that nice and politics should never be used in the same sentence. There have been a couple of instances in our political past where we have had to put our niceness aside and make a choice for ourselves and not for the Political Groups that claimed Bahamianity.

There are persons who would never vote FNM who are very thankful that the leader of this country is not their elected party leader, and for some of us to ascribe the label of dictator to the present Prime Minister as Phil Galanis has done in a recent article, listing him with Stalin, Amin and Hitler, make the mistake of seeing "dictatorship" in a way that is selectively subjective.

This is not the first time that the term has been used to describe Mr Ingraham. It was just after the 1992 election, when qualified Bahamians were selected to manage a situation that was similar to the recent economic downturn; the situation was so dire that too many PLP supporters voted FNM.

When the selections for State ministers crossed party lines, there was a cry from within the FNM and many could not see why the leader of their party would choose the best persons for the job at that time. Most of them knew that in a similar position, Perry Christie or Lynden Pindling would never look outside of his party structure for help, but whereas Mr Pindling would have the final word on those decisions, Mr Christie would not.

One can liken Mr Ingraham to an updated version of Lynden Oscar Pindling, where the necessity for inclusiveness is seen as a key component in "governing" this modern Bahamas.

For all Bahamians to be included in this process, a particular kind of leader is needed and Mr Christie would not fit this profile, because his niceness to his followers is defined by their ability to do as they please and get what they want, and this is not new. Messrs Dupuch, Wells, Allen and most recently, Russell had to deal with a similar concern.

Less than a hundred miles of the eastern American seaboard the term "dictatorship" is very relative and anyone seeking to use it in a manner that is "politically subjective" is telling his reading audience what he thinks of their ability to think or their inclination to be fearful. If we want to talk about dictatorships, maybe we can have a discussion about the Chinese presence in the Caribbean, particularly right here in America's backyard, less than a hundred miles off its East coast. As always, no politician has anything critical to say about anybody spending money, and there will be dictatorships less than a hundred miles off the east coast. Bahamians of all social strata see their right to travel to Florida as a social, cultural and economic entitlement that has no political affiliation.

EDWARD HUTCHESON

Nassau,

April 16, 2012.