Dear Editor,
In the last book of the Bible, Revelation, extensive reference is made to mythical characters called “The Four Horsemen”.
They were purveyors of death, destruction, dread and gloom.
They were to be particularly involved in the spread of death, disease and the destruction of the family.
In short, they appeared when they did to herald the arrival of the latter times (the end of the world as we currently know it) and portend the arrival of The Lord Jesus Christ and the long anticipated Rapture. It was not a pretty sight that was painted in that scenario.
The aftermath of the literal blow out of the Free National Movement and most of its seasoned leadership appears to have resulted in the ushering in of what might be akin to the fabled four horsemen.
We have an apparent shell shocked, off the shelf “leader” in the form of former Prime Minister Dr. Hubert A. Minnis, who is led by a man who used to be in his Cabinet.
If Minnis has finally come to grips with the fact that Pintard is now his leader, he has yet to demonstrate that. It does not appear to me that he has.
Minnis is wont to issue statements that are different in tenor than those of the leader.
Minnis says that he is in favor of legislation designed to bring about and enforce gender equality among Bahamian men and women.
Pintard and the FNM appear to be suggesting achieving the same goal by “consultation” with Bahamians.
Will this be by town hall styled meetings and/or referendum? I hold the unshakeable view that citizenship can only be conferred by the constitution.
I predict that the relevance of FNM Chairman Dr. Duane Sands in national politics, like Minnis, is over. He is one of the horsemen, in my view.
Pintard is also included, by me, amongst the unenviable ranks of the four horsemen.
I am unable to see, at this point, how his juvenile and utterly boorish criticism and premature critique of the Davis administration will propel the party back to power anytime soon.
In my opinion, he is not a natural leader nor can he be retooled into one. With him as leader, the FNM is destined to remain in opposition for the next nine years or more.
The one glimmer of hope within the FNM is Deputy Leader Shanendon Cartwright.
He is now a seasoned man of the people who has nothing attached to his public persona.
A long time business executive and an entrepreneur, Cartwright also has a feel on the pulse of the constituents in St. Barnabas.
His is a demeanor which elicits trust and stability. He may well be one of the four horsemen but his stallion is of a different cut and breed.
The Four Horsemen are out of the gate and we shall see if the rapture is ushered in.
— Ortland H. Bodie, Jr.
