The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement MICAL candidate Walt Saunders has withdrawn his candidacy for the 2017 general election amid health concerns, according to party Chairman Sidney Collie.

He is the third ratified FNM candidate to withdraw from the race ahead of the 2017 general election.

The announcement of Mr Saunders’ decision came yesterday in a press statement released by the party, in which Mr Collie said the former candidate “on the strong advice of his physician and family decided to withdraw his name from contention.”

While Thursday’s statement didn’t clarify the extent of Mr Saunders’ medical condition, it did indicate that the party is eying several potential replacement candidates for the MICAL constituency.

The statement read: “Our friend and ratified candidate for MICAL, Walt Saunders, informed the FNM leadership that as a result of health concerns, and on the strong advice of his physician and family he has decided to withdraw his name from the MICAL constituency contest.

‘It has been our great pleasure working with Walt as our candidate, and we look forward to his continued improvement in health.”

It continued: “Walt has assured the party and its leadership of his continued support and assistance in ensuring that MICAL is in the win column for the Free National Movement in 2017.

“Walt will be assisting the party in identifying who from the names who have already been put forward is best suited to continue the stellar work that he has begun.”

Mr Saunders, a businessman, was ratified in September by the FNM.

Within days of being ratified, Mr Saunders took current MICAL MP, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister V Alfred Gray to task over his performance as a parliamentarian.

Mr Saunders claimed MICAL constituents were “simply disgusted” by Mr Gray’s efforts as an MP, contending that there were “basic things” Mr Gray could have assisted with but did not.

At the time he said these factors had “really worked against” the Cabinet minister’s reputation in the constituency.

Mr Saunders is a native of Inagua, one of the five islands that form the MICAL constituency.

In early September, less than a week after the FNM’s Bain and Grants Town ticket became vacant, party member Howard Johnson announced that he was withdrawing as the FNM’s South Beach candidate, pointing to “personal and private family matters” as his reasons for dropping out of the race.

Mr Johnson said despite these matters, which required his constant presence and attention, he remained committed to the party and pledged to assist the FNM in any way possible to win the next election.

About a week earlier, FNM member Leonard Sands announced that he was officially ending his candidacy for the Bain and Grants Town constituency.

It came more than a month after he announced that he was suspending his campaign.

Mr Sands posted on his Facebook page earlier this year: “There are times in life when we have to evaluate what is really most important at that time.

“As I arrive at this place in my political life many will have much to say about my decision and many will be disappointed. I must, however, remind those persons that many are the plans of man, but it is the Lord’s will that shall prevail.”

The FNM has since ratified talk show host Jeffrey Lloyd to run in South Beach and 21-year-old University of the Bahamas student Travis Robinson for Bain and Grants Town.