The Bahamas has lost yet another great son of the soil. Mr.
Warren J. Levarity, a former member of both chambers of the House has passed at
the age of 82. Even though he was blessed with a long and productive life and
fought the good fight, the PLP family still mourns his passing.
Warren James Levarity was born in West End, Grand Bahama on 25
June, 1932 to Mr. and Mrs. Garnet Levarity. After moving to New
Providence at a young age, he attended the Government High School. He would
later matriculate the Shaw Business School in Toronto, Canada where he would
become a trained Accountant.
In a landmark bye-election in 1959, Mr. Levarity became the PLP
representative in the House of Assembly for the constituency of Grand Bahama
and Bimini. He would later represent West End and Bimini before serving in the
Senate after the June 10, 1982 general elections.
Along with his close colleagues Sir Arthur Foulkes and the late
Jeffrey Thompson, Mr. Levarity anchored the National Committee for Positive
Action (NCPA) of the Progressive Liberal Party, the activist group of men who
were central to ushering the Bahamas to Majority Rule.
A second generation politician noted for his acumen as a political
strategist, Mr. Levarity played a key role in the events that culminated in
that historic political and social revolution in 1967. In addition, Mr.
Levarity managed the business affairs of the
Bahamian Times, the
newspaper designed by the NCPA to educate the Bahamian people about the need
for social change.
It is
noteworthy that Mr. Levarity dominated the political scene on the island of
Grand Bahama throughout the 1960’s. This was further embellished by the
towering figure of his father, former Senator Garnet Levarity.
Mr. Levarity was one of the “Dissident Eight” that left the
Progressive Liberal Party in 1970 and ultimately formed the Free National
Movement in 1972 where he would unsuccessfully contest both the 1972 and 1977
general elections with his new and fledging party.
In December 2010 Mr. Levarity was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II
the Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (CMG) for his social
activism and contribution to the political development of The Bahamas.
Mr. Levarity, along with the Hon. A. D. Hanna, was one of the last
remaining members of the Majority Rule cabinet where Levarity served as the
Minister for the Out Islands.
On behalf of the Progressive Liberal Party, on my own behalf and
that of my family, I express sincere condolences to his dear wife Vera and
their four children during their time of loss. God’s grace is always
sufficient.