By OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., August 29, 2021 – There is no record of Prime Minister Dr. Hubert A. Minnis ever participating in any area of sports when he was growing up.
This is clearly an uncommon reality among young Bahamian males growing up in a country where sports is as important to the well-rounded growth and development of a young man as his “first kiss” from his childhood sweetheart.
More likely than not, this is the reason why Dr. Minnis, as an adult, appears to have very little interest in sports, which is beyond dispute based on his lackluster response to the recent major accomplishments by Bahamians in several sports genre.
Indeed, The Bahamas recently demonstrated to the world-at-large at the Tokyo Olympic games that although we are a small country with slightly less 400,000 people, we are a “world superpower” in track and field, with Stephen Gardiner and Shaunae Miller-Uibo winning the Gold Medal in the men’s and women’ 400 meters, respectively.
Dr. Minnis did, of course, extend congratulations on Facebook and during a courtesy call the two Bahamian Olympic heroes made on him, but this reaction was what one would expect from the leader of the country. What’s more, his enthusiasm during the courtesy call was visibly muted.
An even more egregious example of Dr. Minnis’ lack of interest in sports is his ongoing reaction to the remarkable season Bahamian professional baseball sensation Jazz Chisholm Jr. is having as a rookie with the Miami Marlins.
Back in June when thousands of Bahamians visited Miami for Bahamian Heritage Night, with Jazz Chisholm Jr. being the center of attraction, Dr. Minnis – without explanation – cancelled his planned trip to see Jazz play.
Both PLP Opposition Leader Philip “Brave” Davis and Deputy Leader Chester Cooper were prominently seated in Miami Stadium for the game.
Dr. Minnis’ lack of interest in sports may also be the reason why after the FNM won the May 10, 2017, general election, he selected Lanisha Rolle as Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture. Ms. Rolle was a total disaster as Sports Minister and was forced to resign from the Cabinet in February of 2021 amidst a mushrooming scandal involving alleged financial malfeasance related to a lavish home she is building.
Over the past four-plus years, however, an even more unforgivable neglect by the FNM administration is that construction on the Andre Rodgers National Baseball Stadium, named after the first Bahamian to play professional baseball, came to a screeching halt.
Ground was officially broken for the new baseball stadium near the Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre in December of 2014, with a proposed seating capacity of around 8,000.
During a press conference on November 16, 2016, along with Dr. Danny Johnson, the then PLP Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Project Architect Mike Foster said construction was ahead of schedule and the stadium should be completed in the Summer of 2017.
Of course, the FNM became the government in May of 2017 and obviously completion of the Stadium was not designated as a top priority. What makes this decision by Prime Minister Minnis even all the more disgraceful is the fact that organized baseball in The Bahamas has made tremendous progress in recent years, thanks to the foresight and commitment of Greg Burrows Sr. and other executives of the Freedom Farm Baseball League.
A Freedom Farm Baseball League team recently competed in Babe Ruth’s Cal Ripken Baseball Major/70 World Series and finished fourth in the International Bracket. The Bahamas was one of 25 teams competing in the event hosted at the Ballparks of America in Branson, Missouri.
Appealing for financial assistance prior to the Freedom Farm team leaving for Missouri, Greg Burrows Sr. said in an article published in The Tribune, “We need as much assistance as we can to get the team there…If we want to see more players like Jazz [Chisholm], this is the time to make a contribution.”
Both Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Lucius Fox, who is in the Kansas City Royals farm system, honed their youthful baseball skills in the Freedom Farms Baseball League. Fox was called up to the Majors by Kansas City on July 30, 2021, but he did not make his Major League debut after the Royals recalled outfielder Edward Olivares from Triple-A Omaha on July 31, according to the Kansas City Star.
Given the fact that The Bahamas has a number of other players in the Minor League pipeline that will soon join Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the Major Leagues, it is mind-boggling that Dr. Minnis, because of his personal lack of interest in sports, has not put a greater priority on completing the Andre Rodgers National Baseball Stadium.
By contrast, PLP Leader Philip “Brave” Davis participated in a variety of sports growing up, including track and field, cricket, softball and baseball, excelling in both softball and baseball.
So, with A NEW DAY on the horizon in The Bahamas and the PLP poised to begin the important task of restoring good governance to the country — under the leadership of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis — sports enthusiasts in The Bahamas can certainly look forward to sports receiving the kind of focused attention that has been so lacking under Prime Minister Minnis and the FNM. I have a personal choice as to who I think should be the Minister of Sports in the incoming PLP government, but I shall not attempt to influence the decision-making process by Prime Minister Davis.
