By OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 3, 2021 – In his inimitable style and using his trademark lexicon, Carvel Francis, Publisher and Editor of the online publication BAHAMAS PRESS, posed the following question on Friday, December 3, 2021 on Facebook:
“Why yinner think Minnis FNM hate woman so? They have no women elected to Parliament! They have NO women in leadership. They fired the only woman in Cabinet and now at every stting of Parliament Minnis FNM is beating up on House Speaker Madam Patricia Deveaux…When you see an FNM again ask them for BP….Why Minnis FNM HATE WOMEN SO!? WHY?”
These are undeniably serious questions that deserve serious answers from former Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis, who unquestionably was the worst Prime Minister in the history of The Bahamas, and his cabal of blatantly chauvinistic fellow FNM members of Parliament.
The fact that the Bahamian electorate had the good sense to reverse the destructive political course that Dr. Minnis and his government had placed The Bahamas on by electing a responsible Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) government on September 16 apparently still has FNMs generally wallowing in a cesspit of disbelief, especially given the fact that the PLP’s winning team includes seven dynamic women who have demonstrated since their election to the House of Assembly that they all have bright futures in politics.
From reports I have seen in Social Media and Bahamian newspapers, Speaker of the House of Assembly Patricia Deveaux has been a frequent target of their disrespect, in my view for reasons that have historically been included in the modus operandi of the male-dominated, chauvinistic political landscape of The Bahamas.
One need not be a serious student of Bahamian political history to know that women only got the right to vote in 1962, and even after this landmark accomplishment, except for a group of notable crusading females, a woman’s place was still generally considered to be in the kitchen and the bedroom.
Unfortunately, this I still how some members in the FNM view Speaker of the House Patricia Deveaux as well as the other elected PLP women House of Assembly members.
Based on an article I read on Facebook, my hopes that newly elected Leader of the FNM Michael Pintard would be a far more responsible and effective leader than Dr. Minnis were dashed.
In an article published online by EYEWITNESS NEWS, Pintard said he believes there is “a need to lower the temperature in discussions in Parliament, as he sought to defend his reaction to the speaker chastising members on Wednesday night.”
“His comments came after a heated exchange between him and House Speaker Patricia Deveaux at the end of Monday night’s House sitting, where she sought to chastise members for their behavior and he, in turn, burst out in laughter,” EYEWITNESS NEWS reported.
The Speaker accused the Marco City MP of “making a mockery of the chair.”
“I can only imagine the challenge it must be for a woman in a primarily male-dominated space to feel as if the manner in which men are communicating might be impacted in one way or another by gender,” EYEWITNESS NEWS reported.
The FNM’s disregard for the valuable contributions women are capable of making to politics was also boldly demonstrated by the fact that the only female member of former Prime Minister Dr. Minnis’ cabinet was Lanisha Rolle, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, a ministry that she was blatantly unsuited for. Eventually, she was forced to resign amidst a supposedly financial scandal.
Another factor that political observers are watching closely is to see how big a role will former FNM Cabinet Minister Brent Symonette play in decisions made by Mr. Pintard, whom he endorsed to become the new leader of the FNM.
Symonette was successful in securing lucrative contracts under the administration of Dr. Minnis and there is no reason to believe he is still not in the position to continue to do so under Mr. Pintard should the FNM be returned to power.
Meanwhile, Bahamian women must continue to strive to advance themselves politically in The Bahamas despite the obstacles placed in their path by the male-dominated political oligarchy.
In my lifetime, I would certainly like to see a Bahamian woman achieve the world-wide political prominence of Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados.
