LONDON, England, June 12, 2019 – Her Royal Highness Queen Eliabeth II held an audience with Her Excellency the Most Hon. Dame Marguerite Pindling, Governor General of The Bahamas, at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday, June 12, 2019, during which Dame Marguerite officially informed Her Royal Highness that she is “relinquishing her appointment as Governor-General” of The Bahamas.
This was announced by The Royal Family on the twitter page of Buckingham Palace, along with two photographs of The Queen and Dame Marguerite – one when Dame Marguerite had an audience with The Queen on the occasion of her appointment in 2014 and the other taken during the audience on Wednesday.
The photo taken in 2014 was accompanied by the following caption: “Dame Marguerite Pindling is relinquishing her appointment as Governor-General. Here she is pictured in 2014 at an audience with Her Majesty, upon taking up the role.”
The photo taken at Wednesday’s audience was accompanied by this caption: “Today, The Queen held an audience with The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Her Excellency Dame Marguerite Pindling at Buckingham Palace.”
Dame Marguerite, who became Governor General of The Bahamas on July 8, 2014, is scheduled to be replaced later this month by Cornelius Alvin Smith, a veteran politician and former Bahamas Ambassador to the United States, although an official announcement has not yet been made by the Government.
Meanwhile, there is an overriding consensus in The Bahamas that Dame Marguerite, who was the 10th Governor General in an independent Bahamas, has set the bar extremely high for future Governors General to match her dignity and grace in carrying out her duties as the representative of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
An exceptionally high standard of performance in that office had already been established by Dame Marguerite’s predecessor, Sir Arthur A. Foulkes, and sceptics openly voiced opinions as to whether she was capable of matching Sir Arthur’s regal performance while residing at the official residence of the Governor General at Mount Fitzwilliam.
Dame Marguerite, however, foreshadowed that she was capable of being an outstanding Governor General when she delivered her very first Speech from the Throne, which traditionally outlines the government’s policies at the opening of Parliament, that was widely praised by politicians and the public-at-large. Having set such a high standard, she maintained it throughout her tenure as Governor General.
