November 2018


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Hubert Alexander Ingraham served as Prime Minister of The Bahamas for 15 years, from 1992 to 2002, again from 2007 to 2012 and as Leader of the Opposition from 2005 to 2007. Born at Pine Ridge, Grand Bahama in 1947 to Jerome Ingraham and Isabella LaRoda, he was raised in the humblest of circumstances by his maternal grandparents in Cooper’s Town, Abaco. Electricity, telephones and paved roads were non-existent but what the residents lacked in basic amenities and material riches, they more than made up for in strength of character and community spirit.

His grandmother “Mama Lizzie” was the embodiment of North Abaco: industry, self-reliance, and fortitude. It was she who inspired his life-long commitment to service. Her four-room wooden house was home to six: Mama Lizzie, Hubert’s grandfather “Papa”, an uncle, two cousins and Hubert.

Up front, large and in charge, Mama Lizzie ran a tight ship. She had never been to school but she recognised Hubert’s potential and she sacrificed and worked hard to ensure that he squeezed every bit of education out of the town’s modest All Age School. Meanwhile, Papa taught him how to fish, giving him a means to earn his first savings and teaching him the importance of patience and timing.

By 14, he was a student teacher, had learned how to be a wireless operator and was the delivery boy for three local shops. At 17, Mama Lizzie posted him off to Nassau to “get more learning”. After two years of working while attending evening school, he returned to Abaco planning to become a teacher but Mama Lizzie had different plans for him. It was to be law. Back to Nassau to “finish his learning”. He apprenticed at McKinney, Bancroft and Hughes and was called to the Bar in 1972.

Mr. Ingraham cites Mama Lizzie’s dedication and loyalty as his motivation for becoming politically active. He served on various public agencies and soon became affiliated with the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP). In 1976, he became the party’s National Chairman and a year later, the representative for North Abaco, a position to which he was re-elected on seven consecutive occasions. In 1982, he became Minister of Housing, National Insurance and Social Service and served as Chairman of The Bahamas Mortgage Corporation, an institution established to secure and guarantee housing financing for those in need. In Parliament, significantly, Ingraham served as Chairman of an investigative Select Committee on Influence Peddling and Political Contributions.

In 1986, after making charges of corruption against his own party, Ingraham was dismissed from the cabinet but he ran as an Independent for his North Abaco seat and was re-elected to the House of Assembly. Four years later, he joined the then Official Opposition Party, the Free National Movement (FNM) and by May was elected as Party Leader and appointed as Leader of the Official Opposition. In the 1992 general election, Ingraham led the FNM to a landslide victory ending over two decades of PLP power and making him The Bahamas’ second Prime Minister.

Ingraham initiated reforms that did much to restore the flagging reputation of The Bahamas. His tenure was marked by a deliberate reduction in the size of government and its intervention in the economy, devolution of management within the public sector and promotion of private investment. The resultant massive international investment in the tourism and financial services industries revitalised the Bahamian economy. Simultaneous modernisation of labour laws enhanced workers’ rights and protection. Within eight years, investment in public infrastructure and utilities more than halved unemployment. Improved access to health care reduced infant mortality by 30%. Upgrade and expansion of the school system permitted an increase in the compulsory school leaving age from 14 to 16. His administration also enacted a slew of legislation that directly and significantly impacted the practice of law in The Bahamas.

A great believer in the importance of freedom of speech for democracy, he broke the government monopoly of the airwaves by licensing private broadcasters. He is also credited with bringing women and women’s issues to the fore. Perhaps Mama Lizzie was looking over his shoulder! He placed women to head important ministries — Attorney General, Health, Education, Foreign Affairs, Social Development, Transport, Public Service, and Immigration. During his administration the Bahamas appointed its first female Governor-General and Chief Justice.

Having pledged to serve no more than two terms in office, he voluntarily demitted in 2001. His party lost the 2002 election. However, in 2005 he was re-elected as Party leader, again became the Leader of the Opposition and led them to victory in 2007. He took the oath of office as Prime Minister for a third time just as the world entered the global financial crisis. His government’s focus on infrastructural development once again stimulated job creation and allowed The Bahamas to benefit when the world economic recovery came. Initiatives included the first unemployment benefit scheme, a prescription drug benefit scheme, a National Jobs Readiness and Skills Training Programme and creative small business support initiatives.

Although he won re-election to his seat in Parliament, following the FNM’s defeat in the 2012 elections, Mr. Ingraham resigned as party leader, announced his retirement from the House of Assembly and returned to his private law practice. In February, 2015 he led the Commonwealth Observer Mission to General Elections in Mozambique.

Meanwhile, Mama Lizzie lived to 102 and was a constant support throughout, along with his wife Delores and their five children.

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