The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

At the peak of the Black Lives Matter debate in the US in 2021, the noted African American evangelical Voddie Baucham penned Fault Lines, which is a scathing critique of Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality and Marxism and their subtle encroachment into the evangelical church, most notably the Southern Baptist Convention.

Baucham would use the San Andreas Fault as a metaphor for a potential massive ideological rift between evangelicals over the issue of social justice and biblical justice, an issue that prominent Pastor John MacArthur opined is a serious threat to the gospel. I would like to use Baucham’s metaphor for what I currently see occurring within the Opposition Free National Movement (FNM). No one is saying it, but it seems to me that former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis is currently running his own opposition party. His politicking seems to not be aligned with the official Opposition.

There was a photo of an FNM press conference featuring FNM Leader Michael Pintard and other top executives of the party subsequent to an event held to determine the cause of the FNM’s election defeat. I stand to be corrected, but I didn’t see Minnis in the photo. Minnis continues to keep a constant presence in the mainstream media and on Facebook, so much so that Progressive Liberal Party supporters have jokingly referred to him as the real FNM leader. Pintard, on the other hand, is said to be keeping the seat warm until Minnis decides to make his move on the leadership post. I am not stating that there is any truth to these political assertions. The optics of Minnis’ latest moves, however, challenges my scepticism regarding his motives. If Minnis continues along this apparent path of upstaging Pintard and running his very own FNM within the FNM, it will inevitably lead to a major rift within the official Opposition, much like what Baucham has forecasted for the Southern Baptist Convention.

While Minnis remains an unpopular and polarizing figure on the political landscape, he still has thousands of sympathizers within the FNM, many of whom point to external factors, such as COVID-19 and Hurricanes Irma and Dorian, which ultimately led to the demise of his administration. They are arguing that the Davis administration is the beneficiary of all the hard work done by Minnis, who navigated the country through the worst of the pandemic. It is this base of FNM supporters or Minnisites that finds Minnis appealing -- more appealing than Pintard. The current awkward situation within the FNM is similar to what Tommy Turnquest had to deal with with former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham. There was always that lingering thought that Ingraham would make a comeback, despite his talk about serving only two terms.

Turnquest’s disadvantage back then was that he failed to win his seat in the 2002 general election. Pintard, on the other hand, was able to hold on to Marco City in convincing fashion, notwithstanding the unpopularity of the FNM. Him being a member of Parliament gives him better odds of staving off a potential Minnis comeback. Having said that, Minnis’ presence within the FNM can legitimately be viewed as a fault line that threatens to split the party in half before 2026. The Tswana people have a proverb that says that two bulls cannot live in the same kraal. Either Minnis has to submit to Pintard or he will have to be reined in. It’s coming to the point where the FNM executive will have to formally address this issue before it explodes in their face.

KEVIN EVANS

Freeport,

Grand Bahama.

May 19, 2022.