The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

AFTER spending the last few years giving back to the next generation of basketball players as a coach, former basketball/softball/baseball player Bacchus Rolle said he’s eager to venture into the world of politics.

The University of the Bahamas Mingoes men’s basketball head coach is the Progressive Liberal Party’s candidate for South Beach in the Bahamas’ general elections, scheduled for Thursday, September 16.

He’s one of a number of sporting personalities who cast their nominations on Friday for the opposition PLP, the governing body Free National Movement and the various other opposing parties and individual independents.

“It’s an exciting time, but we’ve put in the work and we will continue to work,” said Rolle as the election fast approaches. “Ultimately, we made the decision to get off the sidelines and get involved because we were not quite happy with the direction that the country was headed in. “Of course, being a sports-minded individual and being the head coach of the University of the Bahamas men’s basketball team, I really care for the direction of our young people and I didn’t see a whole lot of options for them. So I just didn’t want to be a part of the criticising team, but wanted to be a part of the team that worked towards getting a solution.”

With the full support of his wife, former female basketball standout Kimberley Rolle (the sports director at UB), in a 22-year union that has been blessed with two sons, Dionysius ‘Deuce’ Rolle, 19 and Derryus ‘Trey’ Rolle, 9, the 50-year-old Rolle said there is no time better than the present to step forward and get involved in politics.

“It’s a fun and enjoyable experience. It has its moments of stress, but ultimately, you try to run on your record,” Rolle pointed out.

“The public knows who I am. They know that I am a man of character and integrity and I tried to be passionate to all.

“So, we’ve been getting some good responses and we’re excited about what we’re hearing. But on election day, the public will decide who they want to represent them. We have a plan. We have a good plan. We have a covenant with South Beach. We believe if we can work together as a unit, we can make those things happen and bring those things to fruition that are in our plans.”

A 1987 graduate of Kingsway Academy who went on to the University of Charleston where he earned a BA in philosophy and a minor in political science in 1992, as he’s been around the block once or twice as a credit mediator by profession, he’s seen and experienced some things and, as a result, he has matured to the place where he feels he can make a difference. “A few years, maybe 10 years older, no, I don’t think I would be able to do it, but I think right now I’m more than ready,” Rolle lamented.

“I feel confident in myself and confident in my abilities to give the proper representation that is needed.”

Only time will tell, however, whether or not the people of South Beach will put their trust in the member of the Lodge of St Michael 1963 SC, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. and One Family Junkanoo Group to lead them after the elections take place.