The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

DR HUBERT Minnis, yesterday defended his leadership ability in the FNM.

Dr Minnis, who was elected leader of the party shortly after its landslide defeat to the PLP in the 2012 general election, was a guest on more94 fm’s Orthland H. Bodie show.

Mr Bodie, throughout the show questioned if Dr Minnis was now truly leader of FNM and not former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham. Mr Ingraham had led the party for nearly two decades. Since announcing that he would resign front line politics, there has been wide spread speculation that Mr Ingraham would still lead the party behind the scenes.

“You say that you are the leader,” Mr Bodie said. “But you know who the maximum leader is in the FNM. It may not be a Minnis, but it might be a Hubert...but not a Minnis.” Mr Bodie at one point insisted that Dr Minnis was just a puppet for the party, acting on the orders of Mr Ingraham.

Claiming the former Prime Minister is no longer involved in party politics, Dr Minnis said FNMs have for a long time grown accustomed to Mr Ingraham’s style of leadership.

Dr Minnis said: “There are some who like that (Mr Ingraham’s style) and there are some who don’t. Therefore those who like it, because I have a different style, they will have a problem that I am not utilising the same style as the former Prime Minister.

However, one must be result oriented. The whole idea is to ensure that there is fair play for each and every Bahamian, that is what I represent.” 

As Mr Ingraham is well respected among FNMs, there is now a great task to re-brand the party, which is no easy feat, Dr Minnis said.

“I would expect some slack intially because I will be compared to Hubert Ingraham. I am sure when Sir Lynden Pindling moved off the scene, who ever came behind him, there would have been this kind of comparison,” Dr Minnis said. 

Recently, speculation has loomed that a divide exists within the FNM party. Several senior members are reportedly concerned about the state of the party under the leadership of Dr Minnis, citing the alleged “malaise” the FNM has now found itself in since its general election defeat.

Since then party officials have refuted those claims.