Ingraham: Christie is the best person to lead the PLP

Wed, Aug 3rd 2016, 11:10 AM

Former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham believes Prime Minister Perry Christie is the best man to lead the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) into the next general election.
"The truth of the matter is, whatever is said about Christie, there is none in the PLP who is more acceptable to the population of The Bahamas than Perry Christie. That's a fact of life," Ingraham said in an interview with ZNS News early last week.
"I think it is wrong for people [to be] saying, 'Christie should go. Christie should go.'
If you want him gone, you should vote against him.
It's not a big deal. He is not where he is because he put himself there. He got there because people elected him to be there.
"Clearly, Christie is fully entitled to remain in office until the end of his term. Fully entitled. And he is fully entitled, if he chooses, to offer himself up for re-election as leader of the party and the party decides [for him] to lead the party in the next election."
Despite leading the PLP since 1997, Christie recently said he is staying on because many " new generation" leaders have asked him to.
However, Ingraham suggested it may also have something to do with the political rivalry between the former law partners.
"He and I were elected to the House at the same time in 1977," Ingraham said.
"And so I could also understand... I was able to serve three terms as prime minister. Why wouldn't Christie want to match that? Why wouldn't he, from his point of view?
"I wouldn't be surprised in the back of his head sometimes if he says, 'Well Ingraham had three terms, why I can't have three terms?'"
Ingraham also said Christie's dreams of becoming prime minister a third time may be achievable if the votes are split among the among the Free National Movement and other parties.
"You must remember one thing: The base PLP support in The Bahamas is firm, unyielding... ain't going nowhere," Ingraham said.
"So to the extent to which others have put it to you that they want to share between the FNM and this thing and the next thing, etc., carry on. All you're doing is guaranteeing the PLP will remain in office. That's what you're doing."

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