The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham conceded yesterday that the Free National Movement’s parliamentary caucus in the House of Assembly this term did not “perform as well as they should have” as an opposition party.

Mr Ingraham’s comments came on 96.9 FM’s “Off the Record” during an interview with his former State Minister for Finance Zhivargo Laing.

Mr Laing, the show’s host, said many people believe the Official Opposition did not perform well in the past five years and that the media perhaps did a better job of holding the government’s feet to the fire.

“That’s a fair comment,” Mr Ingraham responded.

He said some of the FNM’s candidates in the 2012 election - such as Mr Laing - would have done a better job holding the government accountable.

“The public selected who it wanted to be representatives for the FNM in the election,” he said. “Persons like yourself and others who were rejected would’ve put up a far fiercer fight than some of those who got elected but that’s the hand we were dealt and it wasn’t a very experienced team. They had their challenges and so in the House of Assembly they didn’t perform as well as they could’ve and should’ve quite frankly. But the party has a cadre of people, not necessarily those who sit up front, and the FNM has been able to produce a good list of people to put up with (in the general election).”

And although Mr Ingraham has said in the past that opposition forces must unite to defeat the Progressive Liberal Party in today’s election, he said yesterday that unity between the Democratic National Alliance (DNA) and other groups is not necessary for the FNM to win today because dissatisfaction with the governing party is so great.

“That’s been overtaken by other events,” he said. “The public has now decided in my view that they have to prioritise their concerns and the number one concern of the public as I gather it is to be rid of the PLP as a government and that everything else is secondary to that, that everything else is subject to that. They might not have an ideal situation but you (the PLP) got to go; ‘I’ve had more than enough of you and you got to go and I will make my way with Jack and Harry and Tom but I know I cannot live with you for another five years.’”

Focusing on Dr Hubert Minnis’ weakness “is not going to be a good story” for the incumbent party, Mr Ingraham said.

“The public has decided that there ought to be a change in the government, that the only entity that is capable of doing that for them is the FNM and so the public is voting out a government with a consequent voting in of a government.”