Former Senator Lanisha Rolle and businessman D’Aguilar ratified by FNM

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Free National Movement ratified six candidates for the next general election during a Central Council meeting last night, including businessman Dionisio d’Aguilar and former Senator Lanisha Rolle.

Most of the six constituencies the candidates will represent are some of the most historically challenging areas for the FNM, including Centreville, Bain and Grants Town, North Andros and the Berry Islands and Englerston.

Mr d’Aguilar, a fierce critic of the Christie administration, will represent the FNM in Montagu while Mrs Rolle will represent the party in Sea Breeze.

Travis Robinson, a 21-year-old College of the Bahamas student, will represent the party in the Bain and Grants Town constituency, where he hopes to become the youngest parliamentarian in this country’s history.

Earlier this year, Mr Robinson announced that he planned to run as an independent candidate in the area.

He delivered a fiery and well received speech to a packed crowd of more than 100 people at the FNM’s headquarters last night, declaring his nomination proof of his party’s commitment to youth.

Meanwhile, accountant Reece Chipman was ratified for Centreville, lawyer Raymond Rolle for Englerston and customs officer Carlton Bowleg for North Andros and the Berry Islands.

“I’m excited by the prospects of our many talented candidates who are seeking to represent constituencies under the FNM banner, including our six new candidates,” FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis said in a statement. “It is time for all Bahamians to unite behind the FNM and its candidates to rid this country of the PLP and their empty rhetoric and broken promises. The FNM and our great candidates will fight for the Bahamian people each and every day.”

Dr Minnis and the newly ratified candidates stuck with their theme of harshly criticising the Progressive Liberal Party while promoting the FNM as a source of relief for the country.

Mr d’Aguilar called the Christie administration the worst of any government in Bahamian history; Mrs Rolle and Mr Chipman criticised the government’s Hurricane Matthew response to the areas they hope to represent, while Mr Rolle and Mr Bowleg promised to break the strangleholds that the PLP has had in their respective constituencies.

Of the ratifications, those of Mr d’Aguilar, Mrs Rolle and Mr Robinson are the likeliest to prompt the strongest reactions.

Mr D’Aguilar, owner of the Superwash chain of laundromats, who once served as chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, has attracted the ire of top PLP members for his comments on a range of issues, from Baha Mar to the ease of doing business.

His business credentials will be heavily touted by the party.

As for Mrs Rolle, her ratification signals how much Dr Minnis has consolidated power in the FNM after retaining his leadership title at the party’s convention earlier this year.

Her initial appointment to the Senate upset some in the party, including sitting parliamentarians who thought she had little experience.

Frank Watson, former deputy prime minister, previously called her appointment “one of Dr Minnis’ tragic mistakes.”

Following a rough tenure, she resigned from the Senate after The Tribune published stories about a recording in which she made disparaging comments about several FNM MPs, including Long Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner, during a conversation with Lincoln Bain.

Despite that resignation, she appeared to remain within Dr Minnis’ circle of trust, frequently attending FNM political events and occasionally being seated in the front row of the party’s events, next to party officers and parliamentarians well before she was officially ratified for a nomination.

Comments

ohdrap4 says...

Three days before Halloween, some pictured above will need no costume on Monday.

Posted 28 October 2016, 2:32 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

This essentially wipes out any strategic upper hand I could have given Dr Minnis, Ms Rolle is trouble. She rides on being loud and speaking with passion. That's it. She will fall into many loudly passionate traps if she ends up in parliament.

Posted 28 October 2016, 2:53 p.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...


Comrades! You tell me if this is the much promised ratification to “The Peoples Court Of Public Opinion Calls For ‘Significant’ Change’ that the Red Movement have been promising to respond to?
The Montagu constituency’s seeing Richard replacing Loretta back in 2012 who was shifted to Long Island by Papa Hubert, and the choice now that Minnis has decided to replace Montagu’s Richard with Dionisio, sure as hell does presents a best case study for projecting the Red Movements 2017 General’s “Government-in waiting” UBPnites voting results.
The Red Movement wants their own red supporters to believe Montagunites are prepared to declare their embrace for Dionisio as the quick fix to their current MP Richard's issues?
Your Blogger Comrade Tal is not so sure Montagunites will be all that ready for a man's bearing the mark on he forehead as the Red Movement's first officially sanctioned Izmirlianite 2017 General's Candidate? But Montagu is well known as the most reliable last stand for retaining the ‘safer seats” old days mentality of the Sir Stafford's UBPnites era?
I don’t recall where Richard the newest political fan of the PLP prime minister, has emphatically stated he would not run as an Independent (not contested by the PLP) Montagu candidate?
Exactly, other than the want of a “safer seat” what exactly are the ties to connect a Dionisio to Montagu? So UBPnite protected that even Bran’s DNA might have already agreed not to run a Montagu 2017 General’s Candidate?
I guess Montagunites, could soon learn if “Foreign Promoting Over Natives Is Better For The Bahamaland?
Who could be faulted if they be thinking it's still the "Fisherman's From Cooper's Town" who is still pulling the red strings?

Posted 28 October 2016, 4:38 p.m. Suggest removal

leonardlaing says...

Wow.....oh my word

Posted 28 October 2016, 7:24 p.m. Suggest removal

birdiestrachan says...

What a bunch. May the Good Lord have mercy on us all. Poor Mr: Lightbourne
got kicked to the curve for Mouth Almighty. Bah mar is a good example for what he is all
about.

Posted 28 October 2016, 8:12 p.m. Suggest removal

Greentea says...

Lanisha Rolle? Lol. She is the best (female) candidate the FNM can muster?

Posted 28 October 2016, 11 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

That's just it, there's a narrative that the Bahamian people aren't wiling to accept female leadership and it's absolute kaka. They present us with anyone with female organs and say "look, woman" just look how progressive we are. I still cannot believe that history records Mother Pratt as first deputy prime minister. I have no doubt she is a very nice woman and has helped many people, but deputy prime minister with possibility of prime minister?? This job requires you to have some knowledge of diplomacy, world affairs, trade, economy, negotiations etc etc. that was not Mother Pratt and everybody knows it.

And now we have Lanisha Rolle to step in it. If it's one thing I've become convinced of, it's that if there's one grouping that doesn't want REAL female "leadership", it's the people sitting at the head of these parties. There's a certain type of alpha male who EEN puttin' up with no smart woman telling them what to do (and I'm not talking about Loretta, she's not as bad as Lanisha but I believe she was another token).

"Jack and Jill", what nonsense, and if Minnis can't see it...

Posted 29 October 2016, 2:51 a.m. Suggest removal

sheeprunner12 says...

Lanisha Rolle is no worse than any other wannabe politician ....... she just suffers from foot-in-mouth syndrome

Posted 29 October 2016, 7:09 p.m. Suggest removal

Socrates says...

with this rabble and the PLP deadwood asking for another 5, seems to me the continuation of self-drive, intellectually bankrupt government is assured no matter who wins..

Posted 31 October 2016, 2:04 p.m. Suggest removal

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