Minnis Hosts First Drive-in Campaign Rally Amid Pandemic Ahead of Election
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As the general election loom, the political arena saw its first drive-in rally.
Prime Minister Hubert Minnis addressed hundreds of supporters in Grand Bahama who stayed in or near their vehicles, to prevent the continued spread of COVID-19.
Despite its high cases of infection in the country, the Free National Movement found a new way to reach its supporters. The party supporters waved pom-poms from their car windows, blew the car horns in support of their candidates, while others danced while social distancing from others.
Minnis touted his vaccination program stating that 11,000 more Bahamians were vaccinated between Monday and Friday.
He hit out at the Leader of the Progressive Liberal Party Philip Davis who has criticized his government’s COVID-19 policies to control the virus.
Minnis praised the “decisive leadership” of his government.
“Some other people played down the pandemic and the vaccine. They talked fool and voted against the Emergency Order. If Brave Davis was leading the country, we would be in much, much worse shape,” Minnis said.
“He and I are distinctly different. I wanted to save lives. He wanted to open the bars.”
Minnis added that he laughed when he saw the PLP’s slogan, ‘A New Day.’
“I bust out laughing when I heard that…He is a PLP from the dark days of the ’80s…Brave is no new day. Brave is yesterday’s news. He would take us back to the dark days.”
Last week, Davis said his party will postpone drive-in rallies to help battle the spread of the infectious disease.
The big story
Bahamians will head to the polls on September 16 in an early election called by Minnis. It comes at a time when the country is battling high deaths and hospitalizations due to COVID-19.
The government has launched its vaccination campaign to combat the further spread of the virus. Three vaccines are now available–AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson.
