The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

TWO senior religious leaders used yesterday’s Majority Rule service to deliver pointed warnings to political leaders, criticising the politicisation of the national holiday and questioning why young Bahamians remain largely absent from positions of political power.

Anglican Bishop Laish Boyd and Pastor Mario Moxey addressed parliamentarians and congregants at the annual ecumenical service marking the country’s 59th Majority Rule anniversary, held at Bahamas Harvest Church. Both framed Majority Rule as an unfinished project rather than a settled achievement.

Bishop Boyd, delivering brief remarks, stressed that the observance should not belong to any political party or individual.

“In my humble opinion,” he said, “it's unfortunate that both major political parties have managed to politicise this event, either by certain behaviours when they are in power or by catching feelings and keeping away when they're not in power and that's wrong.”

He said both the Progressive Liberal Party and the Free National Movement were guilty of the practice and urged political leaders to stop treating the holiday as partisan territory, calling instead for more moments of national unity.

Bishop Boyd said all Bahamians had benefited from Majority Rule, regardless of race, but warned that freedom also carried responsibility. He said, in many respects, Bahamians had failed to fully honour the opportunity created by Majority Rule.

“Majority Rule Day is not a full stop. It's not a pinnacle at which we have arrived. Majority rule day is a comma. It is a semicolon. It is a plateau on which we pause before we go to higher heights, so we cannot rest on our laurels,” he said.

He said the country must continue striving for inclusion and guard against replacing one form of exclusion with another.

“While the white oligarchy that was exclusionary, and that limited opportunity for so many, is no longer doing so, we need to ensure that a similar black oligarchy doesn't take its place,” he said.

Pastor Moxey, who delivered the sermon, echoed the call for reflection but focused his message on generational leadership and political vision. He recalled that many of the leaders who ushered in Majority Rule were under 40, contrasting that with today’s political landscape, where the average age of a Member of Parliament is 50.

“Here’s my point: a nation that delays its youth leaders eventually delays its destiny,” he said.

He questioned why young Bahamians who were entrusted with the country’s future in 1967 now appear relegated to the margins of political life.

“If,” he said, “young Bahamians were trusted with the future of our nation in 1967, one of the most pivotal times in the history of our nation, why are they now often trusted only with campaign logistics and photo opportunities?”

Pastor Moxey challenged political parties to nominate at least 30 candidates under 30 in the next election cycle and urged stronger mentorship across generations.

“I want to say to our seasoned leaders, your greatest contribution may not be how long you remain in office, it may be who you prepare to lead when you're gone,” he said.

He said too many political campaigns rely on personal attacks rather than ideas. He cited low voter turnout in recent elections as evidence not of apathy, but of disappointment.

He said Majority Rule succeeded because it offered Bahamians a future worth believing in, arguing that power mattered only because of what it promised to deliver.

“And as we approach another season of election campaign, I want to caution all political parties and all politicians alike, the Bahamian electorate has matured over the years,” he said. “We are thinking voters. We are discerning voters. Bahamians will attend your rallies, accept your gifts, smile politely and still vote based on vision, not favours.”

He urged politicians to abandon insults and destructive behaviour and return to the spirit that made Majority Rule transformative.

PLP chairman Fred Mitchell appeared to respond to the clergy’s remarks later in the day at the party’s headquarters.

“As for those who are concerned about whether young people will take over, just do the math,” he said.

“Time runs out on everybody. And as for whether this is a PLP holiday or it’s a joint holiday, which it is, until others catch up, you always got to keep it going.”