The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Free National Movement’s youth association president wants young FNM supporters to carefully consider who should be the party’s next leader and to support someone who will acknowledge the party’s mistakes and commit to addressing them.

Carlyle Bethel, speaking during a general body meeting of the Torchbearers Youth Association last night, said young people can expect leadership candidates to come requesting their support as the race intensifies.

“We have a convention on the horizon, where we will elect a new leader, deputy leader, chairman and other executive party officers,” he said last night in one of the final meetings of his tenure.

“Many people will come to you for support. They will try to break up the bonds that we have in an effort to add votes to their count. We must not let them. We know the issues that we faced as Torchbearers.”

“We know what it is to arrive first and be seated at the back. We know what it is to be cut out and cast to the side. We have walked through that fire but we are still here.

“We know the complaints that young people around this country have expressed to us about our party and we’ve made the recommendations. The leadership team that we elect at this convention will be instrumental in rebuilding our party over the next five years in preparation for 2026. That rebuilding process started September 17, 2021.

 “We must not throw our support behind people lightly. We must ensure that anyone who wishes to gain the full support of TYA, one of the largest voting blocs at convention, is fully committed to acknowledging the mistakes and making the necessary changes to fix them. As your president, I promise to you today, that I will lead this charge. I will not throw my support behind anyone until I, after consultation with you, am satisfied that they will address our issues and concerns.”

 After its general election loss, the FNM is gearing up for a November convention where top positions will be up for grabs. Party leader former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has said he will not offer himself for re-election to the post.

 Mr Bethel highlighted some of the success of the TYA during his tenure, including its doubling of members in good standing, its successful launch of associations in Family Islands and its success in boosting its average bank balance “from the negatives” to over $5,000 prior to the pandemic.

 “We held info sessions on issues like marijuana, digitisation, land ownership and much more,” he said. “We held debate competitions and broke down national budgets for young people to understand. We had givebacks, walkabouts and charity events for the less fortunate. We renovated the TYA office and completed a constitutional review that gave more power to our members.

 “We held a fundraiser for Hurricane Dorian victims that raised over $15,000 that went directly to those affected by the storm. When COVID-19 first touched our shores, we moved quickly to establish an emergency relief fund that operated throughout the height of COVID to ensure that we were able to provide some financial relief to our members who were laid off.

 “We held virtual meetings to give our input and feedback on how we can tackle the problems from COVID. During COVID, we purchased, prepared and distributed back to school supplies for young people and care packages for the elderly. We actively worked to find jobs for our members and we were key partners in planning and organising one of the largest blood drives for PMH when they were at critically low blood supply levels. And we did all of this while planning and executing the largest political youth convention in this country’s history.”

 Mr Bethel also highlighted the group’s media visibility and its success at maintaining a 50/50 ratio of men and women on its executive board.