EDITOR, The Tribune.

FREE National Movement Leader Michael Pintard continues to walk in the shadows of his predecessor Dr Hubert Minnis, at least in the eyes of prominent members of the FNM Facebook page titled Blame Dem.

Created in 2013, Blame Dem is an offshoot of The No Spin Zone, a popular FNM Facebook page I think is no longer active. Blame Dem has a purported membership of 31,000. The most popular politician in Blame Dem is former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis.

Pintard, based on what I have seen, does not have the support of a small but vociferous group of individuals in the FNM Facebook forum. This is not to suggest that Pintard does not have support in the group. He does. What this tells me is that Blame Dem is a microcosm of an unfolding situation within the FNM that was not fully resolved at the June 1, National Convention in New Providence. Minnis sympathizers in Blame Dem believe that the Killarney MP is being treated unfairly by Pintard and FNM Chair Dr Duane Sands. Minnis sympathizers in Blame Dem have scoffed at the recent Red Splash event, which, according to certain individuals, was poorly attended. To them, the alleged poor attendance portends a resounding rejection of the current FNM leadership by the Bahamian electorate in 2026. According to critics, the most troubling aspect of Red Splash is that it is a sign that many FNMs are not fully sold on Pintard.

Apparently, they have used the Red Splash event to gauge Pintard’s level of support within the FNM among rank and file supporters. The June 1, FNM National Convention means nothing to these critics, who often remark that delegates do not win general elections. To them, their position on Pintard is confirmed by last year’s West Grand Bahama and Bimini by-election, in which the FNM candidate was soundly defeated by the Progressive Liberal Party candidate. To Pintard critics in Blame Dem, this rejection of the current FNM leader invariably correlates with a yearning for Minnis as leader. While Pintard’s performance in the West Grand Bahama and Bimini by-election is routinely referenced as an accurate poll on his electoral prowess by certain Blame Dem critics, they have somehow managed to completely ignore the devastating results of the 2021 general election, in which the Minnis led FNM won just seven seats -- 28 less than the 35 it won four and a half years prior to the electoral contest. Indeed, lost in all this criticism of Pintard is the many hardworking FNM MPs and Cabinet ministers who were punished by the Bahamian people due to their apathy towards the then prime minister. Dionisio D’Aguilar, Jeff Lloyd, Marvin Dames, Desmond Bannister, Darren Henfield, Reward Wells and Dr Duane Sands, to name a few, all lost their seats because of the unprecedented unpopularity of Minnis as Competent Authority.

What’s more, Minnis also struggled to retain the safe FNM seat of Killarney. Of the 5,126 Killarney voters who cast their ballots for the five candidates, Minnis gained only 2,501 or 48.79 percent of the votes. When one takes into account the 7,112 eligible voters in Killarney, only 36 percent supported Minnis. Ironically, the FNM gained also 36 percent of the votes or 46,030 nationally. With respect to Minnis in Killarney, a staggering 64 percent of voters did not support him in 2021. Yet certain FNMs in Blame Dem view him as the party’s best option moving forward. Pintard has stated that there will be no more convention elections before the 2026 general election. Yet the Minnis faction continues to agitate on the sidelines for the removal of Pintard. They view him as a usurper who is serving on an interim basis until their choice for the FNM leadership resumes his control of the party. The thought of Pintard leading the FNM to victory in 2026 is probably more repulsive to his critics than the thought of the PLP winning.

In any case, the irony of Blame Dem’s anti-Pintard posture is that is bears an uncanny similarity to The No Spin Zone’s anti-Minnis posture in 2012, following the retirement of former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham from the House of Assembly. The group wanted Ingraham to return. Some prominent elements within Blame Dem are holding out hope that Minnis will return. The brouhaha over Pintard and Minnis in Blame Dem will not subside anytime soon. This split between the Minnis and the Pintard camps underlines the FNM’s history of factions and infighting among supporters since its inception in 1970. The only way Pintard would ever be able to attain a peace deal with his detractors would be for him to step down for Minnis. That is unlikely to happen. Until then, Blame Dem critics of Pintard will continue to scrutinise his performance as FNM leader.

KEVIN EVANS

Freeport, Grand Bahama

September 10, 2024.