By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

THE Free National Movement (FNM) announced the ratification of four more candidates ahead of the 2017 general election, with FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis hailing the lot as integral cogs in the party’s “better governance” machinery.

Although not present at the party’s mini rally last night, incumbent Long Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner was announced as the FNM’s standard-bearer for the constituency, slamming the door on speculation that the party might look to replace her prior to the election.

Dr Minnis and party officials are scheduled to visit the island on Monday for an event at the Salt Pond Regatta site, where Dr Minnis is expected to endorse Mrs Butler-Turner to the people of Long Island.

In addition to Mrs Butler-Turner, the party ratified former Deputy Commissioner of Police Marvin Dames for the Mount Moriah constituency, former Democratic National Alliance (DNA) Chairman Mark Humes for the Fort Charlotte constituency and local entrepreneur Walt Saunders for the MICAL constituency.

All three men were praised by party officials for their extensive resumes and efforts in and around the communities they are preparing to contest.

Mr Dames, the person Dr Minnis said would play a “pivotal” role in taking the country back from the grasp of criminals, used his time in front of the FNM supporters gathered at the party’s Mackey Street headquarters to signal a rebirth for both the constituency of Mount Moriah and the country. The Tribune estimated the crowd to be around 200 people.

Mr Dames was named by party insiders last week as the party’s choice for the Mount Moriah constituency.

In an interview with this daily last Wednesday, Mr Dames said while the FNM’s interest in him had stirred much debate, he had yet to accept any position and the party hadn’t made him any assurances.

However, over the weekend those conversations between his camp and the party’s executives advanced, with Mr Dames holding several meetings with the constituency’s association team to hash out the best plan for Mount Moriah.

The former law enforcement officer last night thanked both the Mount Moriah constituency association and the FNM for his nomination and subsequent ratification, insisting that men like him - those not attempting to use political offices to advance their personal stances, but instead improving the lives of Bahamians - can no longer sit by idly and watch the country slip into peril.

“I have lived long enough to witness good governance and bad governance. All of the distractions aside, we as Bahamians are at a critical juncture in the development as people and as a nation; where we must make our leaders accountable,” stated Mr Dames.

He called on voters to “stop the talk”, and use their power to affect the necessary changes in society.

“Our future depends on it. Mediocrity can no longer be acceptable. Promises in the absence of a plan and timeline amounts to nothingness. Smooth-talking accompany by no action can not and should not be rewarded.”

He assured those in attendance that he was entering politics for the sole purpose of improving the lives of those that called the Bahamas home.

Presented as the FNM’s “proof” that the party is serious about improving the country’s education climate, Mr Humes outlined the basis of his constituency plan, ensuring residents that he is focused on fixing the issues that plague the once great community.

Connecting his professional achievements to solutions for those problems, Mr Humes said he is certain that the team being constructed by the FNM will change the way politics in the Bahamas is carried out.

Mr Humes, a lecturer in the School of English Studies at the College of the Bahamas, ran as the DNA’s candidate for Fort Charlotte in the 2012 general election, where he received 519 votes.

Mr Humes joined the FNM in April. He resigned from his post as DNA chairman in July 2013, saying the decision was personally motivated and in keeping with his principles and what he believes to be “right and true”.

Furthermore, Dr Minnis used last night as an opportunity to ramp up the party’s campaign strategy, launching attacks at the government for its inability to address the country’s woes and double-down on assertions that he is prepared to work with third party organisations to rid the country of the Progressive Liberal Party.

Dr Minnis said the PLP wants to make the upcoming general election a battle of wits between himself and Prime Minister Perry Christie. However, the Killarney MP rejected the notion, insisting that when voters go to the polls next year, the decision should hinge solely on the failures of the PLP government and the hope presented by the FNM.

Dr Minnis rehashed several recent crime statistics and occurrences, including a triple shooting earlier this week that left two men dead and a boy in hospital, and the robbery and battery of the former wife of one of the Free National Movement’s founding fathers, 89-year-old Beverly Wallace-Whitfield.

He said events like this should serve as reasoning that the PLP isn’t focused on addressing the issues of the nation, and instead are only focusing on improving the lives of themselves and their cronies.

Dr Minnis said the FNM intends to release segments of its detailed national plan in the coming weeks, promising that once issued, Bahamians would see that not only is the FNM the better party, but best for the country.