The night of the general election loss for the Free National Movement (FNM) in May 2012, Hubert Ingraham, the then leader, announced he was stepping down.
Of the elected members of the FNM only Dr. Hubert Minnis and Neko Grant had served as full members of Cabinet. Grant was a long-standing MP who was nearer to his political end than beginning. He was also not considered a potential leader.
With Ingraham leaving and no other real option, the FNM gave leadership to Minnis. He appeared to be the only one. The party wanted to quickly find a leader. That was a mistake.
Though he tries, Minnis is not a natural political leader. In four and a half years he has not connected with the electorate. He does not inspire. He has lost 70 percent of his elected members of the House of Assembly. They went to the governor general and had him removed as leader of the opposition.
The FNM could have taken another course. In the aftermath of a major defeat, the loss of a charismatic leader and there being no clear successor, parties can put in place interim leaders while they strategize for the future. Such an interim leader could be an older and respected member of the organization who would pledge not to run for leadership when the party finally decides to have a race.
Having such a caretaker would allow a party time to evaluate all potential leaders, in and out of the legislature. Once the candidates are narrowed, an understanding could be reached with a party member who is in the House and has a safe seat.
That person would resign and let the new leader run in that seat if the new leader is not in the House. For example, Neko Grant could have held the post of interim leader and leader of the opposition while the party put together a proper list of people to run for leader. There would have been no rush to make an unfit person such as Minnis the leader.
The FNM suffers to this day because it rushed. Brent Symonette would have been better. Zhivargo Laing would have been better. Charles Maynard would have been better (though he is now no longer with us). That is not to say that any of these men would have been great leaders. They all just have, or in the case of Maynard had, more ability than Minnis.
The FNM has fractured because the FNM base has fractured. Loretta Butler-Turner's departure from the Minnis caucus came long after many educated and upwardly mobile FNMs had already left the party. It is unclear if they will come back by the election.
Political parties in The Bahamas should learn from the FNM error. Take your time before naming leaders after general election losses. Weigh all options. Let the contenders come forward, be they in Parliament or outside of it.
Have interim leaders to bridge the gap between the old chief and the new. Picking the wrong leader in haste could lead to the destruction of the party.

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