Prime Minister Perry Christie said yesterday Free National Movement (FNM) Leader Dr. Hubert Minnis will have a difficult time retaining his position as head of the party and suggested others in the FNM are eyeing the top post.

"Minnis is sitting in a position where other people who are not elected members would wish [to be]," Christie told The Nassau Guardian. "So clearly, he is under the gun and will continue to be for some time." Asked how effective he believes the FNM's new leadership team will be, Christie suggested it will likely be handicapped. "They have some difficulties I think because a lot of their strong candidates lost, and by strong I mean experienced," Christie said.

"They have some new intelligent people with them now, but they have a small number, relatively speaking. "And so they are outgunned and out-powered so they will have to dig deep, suck it up, and move on." The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) secured a landslide victory in the recent general election, ousting many former FNM ministers who held seats in the House of Assembly.

The FNM won only nine of the 38 seats. Shortly after the May 7 election, the party chose Minnis to be leader of the Official Opposition. Minnis, who is one of five FNMs re-elected to the House of Assembly, was unanimously elected FNM leader on May 26. While the Killarney MP was not challenged for the leadership, Christie said the time will come when other FNMs will come after his position. Long Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner was elected deputy leader and defeated FNM candidate Charles Maynard was elected chairman.

Yesterday, Maynard insisted that the party is fully behind Minnis and Butler-Turner and believes that they are competent to lead the party at this time. But when he appeared on the Cable 12 program 'Political View' with Jeff Lloyd last night, he suggested that the leader and deputy leader are on probation.

"I believe sincerely that Dr. Minnis and our deputy leader, Loretta Butler-Turner, [have] exactly 12 to 18 months to prove themselves," he predicted. "The FNM traditionally -- and I'll say it as plain as I can -- doesn't take mess. [The members] have a very low tolerance in terms of seeing their party progress." After the party lost the election, former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham resigned as party leader and has announced plans to resign his North Abaco seat in the House of Assembly next month. In addition to Butler-Turner, Ingraham and Minnis, the only two other FNM members to return to Parliament are Central Grand Bahama MP Neko Grant and South Abaco MP Edison Key

. Other FNM members elected are Montagu MP Richard Lightbourn, St. Annes MP Hubert Chipman, North Eleuthera MP Theo Neilly and East Grand Bahama MP Peter Turnquest.

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