The Tribune

By STANLEY CARTWRIGHT

In politics, a party leader is the most powerful official within the organisation. He or she represents the members of that party, its views and ideologies.

A party leader is also the face of that organisation, a point of contact for the media and the general public. They not only represent their supporters locally, but also on the international stage.

A party leader is the physical manifestation of the “best” a party has to offer.

Their leadership crosses party lines, and can be seen throughout the country. They attract both young and old to give of their time, talent, and treasures for the greater good.

This type of leadership is born, not made.

By now you can see where I’m going with this …

Over the past few weeks, we have seen a treasure trove of Letters to the Editor by FNMs, coupled with calls to radio shows, numerous postings on Facebook by party supporters and stalwart councillors alike, who have expressed that Dr Hubert Minnis does not have what it takes to be an effective party leader; a general opinion that many of us have held for years.

The past few months have also revealed that he is not the most powerful official within his party, nor does he seemingly represent the views or opinions of the members of his party. Furthermore, he has done an abysmal job at managing the party’s relationship with the general public, and does very little to inspire party support.

In essence, Minnis has been an ineffectual party leader. But to be fair to him, no one, I would even venture to say not even the man himself, ever believed that he would be where he is today.

Now is not the time to continue to give Minnis a chance at ‘playing’ leader.

He never had it, and he never will.

He has been described by his own colleagues as the worst Minister of Health to ever hold the post. He has eroded the democratic processes of his own party, installing and appointing only those loyal and supportive of him - all to the detriment of the Free National Movement.

His penchant for shooting off press releases when every Tom, Dick, or Harry joins the party, applies for a campaign sticker, or walks past FNM headquarters has turned what could be an effective public relations exercise into a joke. And the less said about his Facebook pages the better.

What all of this points to is the whole question of leadership - or in Minnis’ case, the lack thereof.

This week, we saw yet another blunder when those loyal to him promoted the idea of a non-voting convention. These truly must be the last days. There should be a full convention, and sooner rather than later.

The party should view it as an opportunity to put forward its strongest possible candidates for all posts, and allow the delegates to vote - free of all undue influence or promises. If Minnis and his band of merry men are allowed to subvert the democratic ethos of the FNM, then how are they any better than the PLP?

The informed and observant swing voters are watching to see what happens and, as they did in 2007 and 2012, they will again be the deciding factor on who leads this country.

But the FNM has become a funny creature of late. Many supporters no longer recognise it for the great party that it once was.

It has become the party of excuses - with Minnisites coming up with new ones every other day. For the education of the wider public, let us go through some of the more incredible excuses, one at a time.

You just have to give Dr Minnis a chance.

Well, the man has had three years. How much more time do you need to “figure out” how to be competent? When Loretta Butler-Turner was his deputy, he blamed her for his poor performance but Peter Turnquest has been his deputy for over a year now. What’s the new excuse? If anything, he’s got worse! As mentioned at above, now is not the time for giving Minnis a chance to play leader, the FNM needs to win an election.

All this party infighting isn’t good, the PLP is the only one benefiting from it!

This one is true, but it is all the more reason why Minnis should not be the leader. As another writer recently highlighted, Minnis is actually the PLP’s secret weapon! They want him in the chair as Opposition Leader - nay, they need him there. The PLP’s internal polling shows this. With him in the saddle, they still stand a chance of winning the next general election.

Isn’t it odd that the PLP, with all they can say about Minnis, is never seen to be criticising him in public? There is a reason why: Minnis, by virtue of being himself, is doing their campaigning for them.

The man is that bad. He makes the PLP look competent. And trust me folks, you can take that one to the bank (just not BOB - because, well I digress).

Ya’ll (other FNMs) are the ones making him look bad.

Again, not true. And, by the ya’ll, they usually mean anyone who doesn’t have a slop bucket attached to their face, waiting for the gravy train to pull up. Because nobody’s a fool here. The people supporting Minnis know how bad he is. They know. But there’s something in it for them. Sources close to the party have revealed that Minnis’ inner circle is only pandering to his narcissism to secure their own delicate political futures, but behind closed doors acknowledge his obvious shortcomings. Think about it. Look at the list of characters, and you can figure it out. Deals have been cut, promises made, appointments guaranteed, with the one caveat “please, for the love of all that is Holy, help me stay in this seat!”

These other people just have better PR!

Again, not necessarily true. When you have a hapless candidate, its very hard to turn them into a rockstar. Just ask the guys who previously worked on US Presidential candidate Ben Carson’s campaign. No amount of flimflam oil would make that machine work. The same can be said here.

When the good doctor opted for his jaunt on a local jitney to travel to his office on Bay Street, he proved to us all that he is, in fact, his own worse nightmare. This opprobrium act has been burned into the memories of voters who will not let the FNM forget it!

The humble beginnings of former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham are well-known throughout the length and breath of this country. And never, ever, has Ingraham attempted to parade himself in such an obnoxious fashion to ingratiate himself with voters.

Again, let’s not forget that Dr Minnis is his own worst enemy in this regard. In an attempt to try to overcome this constant battle with, and assault on the English Language, the man actually holds more press conferences with the media. I guess we are truly in a “quagmire of web”.

It’s too late to change him now so we might as well come together and get behind him!

Again, not true. The FNM will not win the next general election if they don’t make a change in its leadership. The idea that the FNM will become the government by default is ignoring the huge demographic of supporters who see Minnis for what he is, and have decided that come hell or high water, they would rather not vote, or vote against the FNM to ensure that Minnis does not become Prime Minister.

The way that it is often characterised is as follows: “if he is this bad, this incompetent as party leader, you can only imagine what will happen if he were Prime Minister. If what he has done to the FNM is any indicator, this country would be ruined.”

It’s The Tribune, The Nassau Guardian, the talk-shows; they are all against Doc!

No one is against the good doctor. The media is calling a spade a spade. It is only those who have something to gain by maintaining the status quo who continue to prop him up. The sooner the party at large accepts this, and moves in unison to correct it, the sooner the public will regain faith in the FNM.

Let us turn our attention now to what transpired this week.

Fresh off a successful birthday fundraiser where she raised over $55,000 for her constituents still suffering from the impact of Hurricane Joaquin, Loretta Butler-Turner was attacked on the airwaves by a junior FNM Senator in her own party, Lanisha Rolle.

Ms Rolle, who is rumoured to be very close to Dr Minnis, thought it was fitting to attack the former deputy leader of her party - the most dynamic FNM MP in the country.

Tongues were wagging throughout the capital when Ms Rolle’s erratic - and very emotional defence - of her leader was played over the airwaves, again, and again, and again. Maybe her attack was a strategic communications move - but if so, it failed. What has resulted is a questioning of Ms Rolle’s competence and whether she should be allowed to remain in her post. Clearly, she is not there to do the people’s bidding.

To Ms Rolle we have a word of advice: “it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than speak out and remove all doubt”.

Sit small, Ms Rolle.

Supporting this rebuke of Senator Rolle was Floyd Wilmott, a huge financial backer of the FNM and close ally and friend of former Prime Minister and FNM leader Hubert Ingraham. Mr Wilmott called in to the same radio show to express his outrage with Senator Rolle. Mr Wilmott not only expressed his disgust and alarm at what the Senator said, but also threatened to pull his financial support of the party.

No doubt many FNMs find themselves wondering what in the blue-blazes they will have to endure in this upcoming week. I would venture a guess that Peter Turnquest, the Rick Santorum of Bahamian politics (and that’s being very generous to Mr Turnquest), will entertain us by pounding on his chest, if rumours are to be believed. But as the Russian proverb goes, “appetite comes with eating”. So we await to see what Mr Turnquest does. No doubt he is emboldened by his newfound status in the party, but a word to the wise is sufficient.

The FNM must decide for itself where it would like to see the party go from here. The country is watching, and hoping for this once great institution to provide them with a choice. If none is offered, the public will go elsewhere, and quite possibly remain elsewhere.

2017 is closing in fast, and as the Prime Minister mentioned last week, “he’s running out of time”. The same can be said for the FNM.