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| Ingraham: FNM remains strong |
Taneka Thompson
Guardian Senior Reporter taneka@nasguard.com
Published: Jul 21, 2012
Former Prime Minister and Free National Movement (FNM) Leader Hubert Ingraham said the Official Opposition will win the 2017 general election due to voter dissatisfaction with the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and dismissed published reports about alleged discord within his party. Ingraham said that FNM will have to do “very little” in order to win over voters in 2017 because they will be fed up with the PLP after the Christie administration’s current term. “The PLP will make sure we win,” the North Abaco MP said when asked what he thought of the FNM’s chances in 2017. “When they finish doing what they’re doing the people of The Bahamas are going to be happy to have the FNM.” His comments came at a press conference in the House of Assembly moments after he handed in his resignation from Parliament to Speaker Kendal Major on Thursday. Ingraham’s resignation takes effect August 19. After the FNM lost the May 7 election Ingraham stepped down as party leader and said he would not take his seat in Parliament. The move set the stage for Killarney MP Dr. Hubert Minnis to be elected as the FNM’s new leader and will cause a by-election in North Abaco. After Ingraham stepped aside as leader reports emerged that the former governing party was left fractured and that there was dissention in the ranks. Ingraham shot down those reports. “The FNM is a strong, vibrant organization,” he said. “It has many, many people and supporters. It got [over] 65,000 votes in the last election, it went to an election with a bad economy and it did very well under those circumstances. So I have no concerns or fear about that. The FNM will bounce back.” He added that reports of discord within the party have been “damaging” to the group. In a statement released after Ingraham’s press conference, the PLP said his comments were fueled by frustration over being ousted from office. |
