In the words of one Free National Movement (FNM) Council member observing the recent chairmanship race, the party has managed to squander its political advantages as The Bahamas continues its collective yawn at what the FNM is presenting.

Sidney Collie's win in the chairmanship race on Thursday night was not surprising.

In observing Collie's win over the colorfully strange community activist

Rodney Moncur, that council member who chatted with National Review after the race, opined, "We have now tripled down on the uninspiring in our leader, our candidates and our chairman."

The characterization seemed an apt assessment.

In the wake of the election of its new chairman, the FNM should consider some very important elements.

Its leader, Dr. Hubert Minnis, endorsed Collie, from all we have been made to understand from our party sources.

Everyone knows that when the leader endorses, whether literally in Minnis' case or through emissaries, it's a calling up of his support within the party, specifically the council.

So Minnis' support on Thursday night was 89 votes, received by Collie, but more astonishing was the fact that over 70 votes were not cast because those voters were no shows, or in political terms, some wanted to register their lack of support by being absent.

The 70 or so absent councilors plus the 27 Moncur votes represent a majority.

Last Thursday's election was less about Moncur and Collie and more about Minnis' slipping grip on the leadership, that same councilor, speaking on condition of anonymity, proffered.

The reality is that a recent member of the Democratic National Alliance (DNA), who is politically unpredictable and radical by anyone's measurement, received a third of the support of those who voted.
Moncur claimed he will work with Collie for the good of the FNM.

Collie has previously questioned Moncur's loyalty to the FNM, given that he has gone from his Worker's Party to the DNA, to the FNM in just a few years.

Collie's challenge as chairman is to get the FNM on message. But this will be hard to do. The party continues to be divided.

There is a great segment that does not believe in the leader, that is not inspired by or motivated by his leadership.

Of course, much of what Collie will need to do as chairman will be behind the scenes, organizing the work of the branches and helping to energize the base.

One senior FNM described Collie as a hard worker, and said that will be a plus for the FNM.

Minnis on Thursday night declared, "Sidney's election as our next chairman is a positive step forward for our party and for our country. He is a man of great honor and integrity."

While we agree in Minnis' characterization of Collie as a man of great honor and integrity, Collie will unlikely bring the kind of vigor that will be needed to improve the FNM's brand and put it in fighting form.

It is telling that the options for chairman were so limited at a time when the party is preparing to head into what will no doubt be a gruelling campaign season as the Progressive Liberal Party battles to stay in power.

Collie is already handicapped by the fact that the party's leader is dull and unconvincing in his contention that he has the ability and the right programs to move the country forward.

But Minnis has repeatedly demonstrated he is far from ready for prime time.

Minnis and his deputy, Peter Turnquest, do not inspire confidence. Collie is now added to this mix. But what the FNM needs more than anything right now is a strong leadership team with fire and drive.

That would prove inspirational. That would likely cause the party to pull together more than it has done since losing the government. These are the realities for the party that has spent four years trying to find its footing.

At a time when it should be well-oiled and fired up, it is puttering along, unable to effectively turn its guns on an under performing, unaccountable government that has been ensnared by multiple controversies.
Under Minnis, the parliamentary team is lacking in vibrancy.

What we have now is the lousiest opposition in recent memory. It is lame and disjointed.

It has allowed the Progressive Liberal Party to repeatedly keep it on the defensive. It has missed multiple opportunities.
It is fractured to the core; it is barely recognized as the FNM built by its founding fathers and the many others whose contributions and commitment had made it an organization of which FNMs everywhere could be proud.

Many of those who know and understand the principles upon which the FNM was founded, who were a part of the struggles in the wilderness years prior to 1992, many of those who know what the FNM once was and what it could be again, are pained by what it has become.

This is the FNM Sidney Collie is now tasked with helping to piece back together.

The party's image was tarnished by a scandal that had its former chairman, Michael Pintard, center stage.

Though Minnis claimed the country would thank the FNM for its handling of the debacle involving an alleged plot by fashion mogul Peter Nygard to murder his billionaire neighbor, Louis Bacon, many are still left wondering what on earth the leader could possibly mean by such a misguided statement.

The only thing that matter has done is diminish the FNM's brand even further.

In the process, Minnis has become a laughing stock and so has the party he leads.

The decision of the council to rally around him and grant his wish for a late convention does not change how he is widely viewed in the public.

Collie must now work to clean up the party's image, help prop up a feeble leader and look for ways to encourage healing.

It is a near impossible task, no matter how politically skilled and experienced Collie may be.

The truth is, the FNM is no stronger today than it was before its election of a new chairman.

The Bahamian people are no more confident in the FNM's ability to wage an effective campaign with an embattled leader and a lackluster chairman.

The biggest winners coming out of the recent chairmanship election were PLPs who are rejoicing in what they see as an unworthy and unintimidating adversary in the FNM.

There is no bark and no bite in the FNM.

These are dangerous times for the party and the cake has started to bake. The electorate is fast becoming weary and impatient with the FNM.

Candia Dames

Guardian Managing Editor

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