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Arinthia Komolafe

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Arinthia S. Komolafe
3rd Leader of the Democratic National Alliance
Incumbent
Assumed office
22 February 2019
DeputyBuscheme (Busch) Armbrister
Preceded byW. A. Branville McCartney
Christopher A. Mortimer
Personal details
Born
Arinthia Santina Braynen

(1980-06-30) 30 June 1980 (age 44)
Nassau, Bahamas
CitizenshipThe Bahamas
Political partyDemocratic National Alliance
SpouseEmmanuel Komolafe (m. 2005)
ChildrenMorgan, Alexandria, Joshua
ParentBradley Braynen & Jenniffer Braynen (nee Harvey)
EducationC.R. Walker Secondary School
Alma materUniversity of Buckingham
ProfessionAttorney; banker; consultant; politician
Websiteaskomolafe.com

Arinthia Santina Komolafe (née Braynen, born 30 June 1980) is a Bahamian politician who was elected the Leader of the Democratic National Alliance (DNA), one of the three main political parties in the Bahamas, on 24 October 2017.[1]

Early life and education

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Komolafe was born on 30 June 1980 at Princess Margaret Hospital in Nassau, Bahamas.[2] Her parents are Bradley Arthur Braynen, a civil servant, and Jenniffer Elaine Braynen (née Harvey) a retired banker, turned protocol and immigration consultant. Komolafe was the second of five children.

Komolafe was educated at Willard Patton Primary School and C.R. Walker Secondary High School.[2][3] She earned a Bachelors of Law from the University of Buckingham in England[4] and successfully completed the Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners (STEP) program in 2010.[5]

Business career

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In September 2013, Komolafe became the first female Managing Director at the Bahamas Development Bank.[3] She served in the post up to March 2016.[6] During her tenure, Komolafe presided over a "no sacred cows" policy which ensured that political cronies and beneficiaries of nepotism were not spared from being pursued for funds owed to the bank.[7]

Komolafe was nominated for the U.S. State's Department Global Leadership Mentorship Program for leadership that made a difference to the Bahamas.[8]

Political career

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Chairperson of the Women's Branch

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In 2012, Komolafe was elected as the Chairperson of the New Providence Women's Branch of the Progressive Liberal Party, having previously served as the Secretary of the Women's Branch. During her tenure, Komolafe led a delegation of women to their first meeting at the 57th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women meeting at the United Nations in March 2013.[9][10]

2017 General Election

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In January 2017, Komolafe was ratified as a candidate for the Democratic National Alliance in the Killarney constituency and served as the Spokesperson for Financial Services, Trade and Industry and National Insurance in the DNA's shadow cabinet.[11][12][13] She was one of thirteen women on the Party's ticket.[14][15][16] She was nominated as the candidate for the Killarney constituency for the 2017 General Elections.[17] She ran opposite the leader of the Free National Movement, Dr. Hubert Minnis.

Minnis won the seat for a third consecutive time, securing 4,163 votes, and went on to become the fourth Prime Minister of the Bahamas.[18][19][20] Komolafe secured 422 votes after only four months on the campaign trail - the highest of all the DNA female candidates and the third highest of DNA candidates of the 35 candidates fielded by the DNA.[21][22]

Killarney Constituency 2017 General Elections Results[23]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic National Alliance Arinthia S. Komolafe 422 7
Progressive Liberal Party Reneika D. Knowles 1087 19
Free National Movement Dr. Hubert A. Minnis 4163 73

Party Leadership

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At a special meeting held on 24 October 2017, Arinthia Komolafe was elected as Deputy Leader of the Democratic National Alliance. She succeeded Christopher Mortimer, who had been appointed Interim Leader.[1][24] following the DNA's defeat in the 2017 General Election in which the Party failed to win a single seat in the House of Assembly.[18] She announced her intention to seek the Leadership of the DNA on 19 February 2019, and went on to defeat fellow challenger Kendal Smith by a decisive 6:1 margin.[25] In doing so, Komolafe became the first female leader of the DNA political party, joining other prominent female leaders, such as such as Cynthia Pratt, former Deputy Leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and Loretta Butler-Turner, former Deputy Leader of the Free National Movement.

Personal life

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In 2005, Arinthia married Emmanuel Komolafe, whom she had met at the University of Buckingham in 2001. The couple have two daughters and one son.[5] Her elder brother, Brandon, died in 2016.[26]

According to financial declarations, Arinthia Komolafe has assets worth more than one million US dollars (2021).[27]

Selected writings

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Arinthia Komolafe wrote a weekly column in the Nassau Guardian for five years, from 2012 to 2017. The articles, which addressed political and socio-economic issues facing the Bahamas, included:

See also

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In 2014, Arinthia S. Komolafe served as one of the featured speakers in the 2nd Annual Eleuthera Business Outlook (EBO) on April 24, 2014:[28][29]

In 2018, Komolafe was selected to participate in the U.S. State Department exchange program in 2018, focusing on the U.S. electoral process:

References

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  1. ^ a b "DNA names new leader & deputy". www.bahamasnational.com. 2017-10-25. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  2. ^ a b "The Bahamian Dream II – The Nassau Guardian". thenassauguardian.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  3. ^ a b "Bahamas Development Bank Welcomes Mrs. Arinthia S. Komolafe as Managing Director". The Bahamas Weekly. 3 October 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-09-30.
  4. ^ "The Bahams Development Bank Welcomes Arinthia S. Komolafe as Managing Director". The Bahamas Weekly. 3 October 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-09-30.
  5. ^ a b "Bahamas Development Bank appoints first female managing director – The Nassau Guardian". thenassauguardian.com. 2013-09-30. Archived from the original on 2018-01-11. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  6. ^ "Bahamas Development Bank's Managing Director to resign". The Bahamas Weekly. 25 March 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-04-04.
  7. ^ "Bahamas Development Bank's Managing Director to resign". 25 March 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-04-04.
  8. ^ "thebahamasweekly.com - U.S. Embassy Honors Andrea Archer as The Bahamas' 2014 International Woman of Courage Award Recipient'". www.thebahamasweekly.com. 2014-04-03. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  9. ^ BahamasLocal.com (2013-03-14). "PLP Women's Branch attends UN's 57th Session on the Commission on the Status of Women | Bahamas Local News". www.bahamaslocal.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  10. ^ "PLP Women's Branch attends UN's 57th Session on the Commission on the Status of Women". www.thebahamasweekly.com. 2013-03-13. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  11. ^ "DNA 'would have 13-member Cabinet' if elected". Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  12. ^ "DNA ratifies 9 candidates". www.bahamasnational.com. 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  13. ^ "Bain among nine new candidates named by DNA – The Nassau Guardian". thenassauguardian.com. 2017-01-12. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  14. ^ "thebahamasweekly.com - DNA Women urge more female participation at the Cabinet level". www.thebahamasweekly.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  15. ^ Gibson, Jeffarah (2017-05-09). "Women making their mark at the polls". Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  16. ^ Hamilton, Deandrea (2017-04-28). "Race to the Polls: Female Candidates vs Male Candidates – Magnetic Media". magneticmediatv.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  17. ^ "Minnis, Knowles and Komolafe nominate for Killarney – The Nassau Guardian". thenassauguardian.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  18. ^ a b "The Bahamas Investor". www.thebahamasinvestor.com/2017/plp-defeated-in-fnm-landslide/.
  19. ^ "Dr Hubert Minnis sworn in as Prime Minister of the Bahamas". Tribune242. 2017-05-12. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  20. ^ "Dr. Hubert Minnis Sworn In as Fourth Prime Minister of The Bahamas". www.thebahamasweekly.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  21. ^ "General Elections Results" (PDF). www.elections.gov.bs/archives/26592.
  22. ^ BahamasLocal.com. "Bahamas General Election 2017 - Nassau". www.bahamaslocal.com. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  23. ^ "Parliamentary Registration Department" (PDF). www.elections.gov.bs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/2017-General-Elections-Results.pdf.
  24. ^ "DNA's Special Meeting/Elections". Dive Exuma. 2017-10-25. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  25. ^ "Arinthia S. Komolafe". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  26. ^ "Brandon Bradley "The Grill Master" Braynen's Obituary on The Nassau Guardian". The Nassau Guardian. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  27. ^ "At Least 55 Millionaires Want Seats in Bahamas Parliament - Caribbean News".
  28. ^ "Chamber Chief Optimistic About Eleuthera's Economic Future". 16 April 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-04-20.
  29. ^ "Eleuthera Business Outlook Set for April 24". 16 April 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-04-29.
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