By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Progressive Liberal Party Cabinet minister Leslie Miller said yesterday he believes the PLP should not contest Dr Hubert Minnis in Killarney, arguing the former prime minister deserves respect despite the Free National Movement’s decision to cut ties with him.

Mr Miller, the former Tall Pines MP, said he has told Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis that the PLP should not run a candidate directly against Dr Minnis, stressing the FNM’s treatment of him was unfair.

“I don’t think it’s fair to his constituents, and then the little young girl who running against him, the audacity of her to go there and talk about she want to run the place,” he said. “I mean for Christ sake, show some respect. The man, he was the PM ya know. You don’t treat him like he just walk from olden corner ya know.”

The issue has come into sharper focus as the Constituencies Commission prepares to recommend boundary changes ahead of the next general election. Killarney, one of the largest constituencies in the country, is widely expected to be split.

Mr Miller said if the constituency is divided, the PLP should only contest the new seat, not Dr Minnis’ existing one. “I’m sticking with that because I don’t think he was treated the way he should’ve been treated as a former prime minister and as a man who works half on behalf of his constituents,” he said.

The FNM has ratified Senator Michela Barnett-Ellis for Killarney, following an announcement in April that Dr Minnis would not be renominated. Dr Minnis has pledged to run regardless, expressing confidence in re-election even if the seat is split. Some members of the FNM’s Killarney association have already declared their support for him, warning the party risks losing the seat.

Mr Miller has long voiced support for Dr Minnis despite their political differences. In 2016, while he was still the PLP’s Tall Pines MP, he described Dr Minnis as a “close personal friend” with the “heart, mind and compassion” to lead the country. At the time, he dismissed criticism that his support for Dr Minnis was motivated by self-interest, insisting he was “born a PLP” but valued the friendship.