PLPs Should Mind Their Mouths On Candidacies

Chairman of the PLP Senator Fred Mitchell speaking in Freeport on Thursday 3 May said that it was important for those who sit on the candidates committee and who are PLPs at large to be prudent in their expressions about who can and cannot be candidates in the next general election.  He said today’s villain may be tomorrow’s hero.  He said there is a Candidates Committee and at this point, those who are on that Committee should not say who can and cannot be a candidate because that would be fettering their discretion.  What we can say is that the candidate must be solvent, of full age, of sound mind and a citizen of The Bahamas (the legal requirements) and the candidate must be a member of the PLP, and know the policies and programmes of the party, the history of the country and committed to patriotism.  Mr. Mitchell was speaking against the backdrop of pronouncements by some former MPs in various public forums about the issue of candidates. Mr. Mitchell said that the Constitutional Commission will have its say on reform of the processes and until then the wise thing to do is to be silent.