Preamble
Leadership failures rarely become existential in a single moment -they accumulate through compromises until disorder becomes normal. What follows is not gossip or grievance, but a record of how one chapter lost its standard -and how that loss echoed for decades.
The Soapbox
Imagine sitting at the table as First Vice of a graduate chapter, and the chapter president gets on his soapbox to admonish the chapter for its failures. That sounds about right—a strong president using his platform to push the brothers to do better, to meet the standard.
Now imagine that the grievance being aired is that he and his fellow neophyte line brothers—the first ever “locally made”—have discovered that a year has passed and their intake paperwork has still not been submitted to Nationals.
The Absurdity of a Ghost President
Let’s stop for a moment and analyze the implications of this. Does this neophyte not know that his grievance can only be directed toward his intake chairman and the chapter president at the time of initiation? Those are the only two men with both the power and responsibility to ensure the integrity of that process. Is this being raised as a general chapter grievance because he doesn’t want to confront those responsible—or does he sincerely not understand how the organization works?
And that brings us to the deeper absurdity: as a ghost non-member, how are you holding office at all? I could not imagine such a thing happening anywhere else in the history of Phi Beta Sigma—a non-member serving as president.
A better brother than I might have censured that president and called for immediate elections so that we could have an actual Sigma, with leadership experience, in office. But I succumbed to the embarrassment and shame appropriate to being an officer in such a chapter, and took it upon myself to organize and push their paperwork through to Nationals.
In some aspects, one might say that my failure to act—to invalidate the previous election and uphold the standard of Sigma—set the tone for decades of dysfunction. For this, I must take some measure of responsibility. I could not have foreseen the depths to which the chapter would sink, and in all honesty, I did not want to acquire the office of President through what could be described as a hostile takeover.
For me, leadership is a burden that must be earned. I only wish to serve if I can present my track record, my vision for the future, and earn the support of the brotherhood—not just in their votes, but in their willingness to be partners in accomplishing the mission. For that reason, a hostile takeover has never been an option for me.
However, the depth of dysfunction in Sigma Bahamas has finally reached an apex that warrants the snatching of both charters, and every real Sigma is concerned. To address the problem, you must study and understand it -and that begins at the beginning.
The Union Model Presidency
It was the summer of 2002. I had just completed my dual master’s degree and, after four years of part-time DES service, was eager to come home to build something meaningful—something that could strengthen our communities through an organization designed to do exactly that.
I arrived at what I thought was a regular chapter meeting, only to learn it was an election night. I was immediately struck by how few brothers were present—mostly neophytes—and how the usual format of chapter elections was being ignored. Even in undergraduate chapters, we held candidate forums to assess qualifications and vision, but none of that happened here.
Attempts to use Robert’s Rules to restore order were met with presidential censure. The prevailing sentiment in the room was excitement over electing the first “Bahamian-made” brother as president—a sentiment fueled by none other than our esteemed charter member, Brother Willie Dean. Apparently, the fact that this line was less than a month post-initiation was not deemed disqualifying.
The logical choice of the neos was a charismatic union leader who ran for president against me and won. I was told it was a close race. Although I was still frustrated at not being given the floor to speak, I ran for First Vice unopposed, and the rest of the offices were divided up through whatever process was being followed.
The enduring legacy of that night is this: the new president had no Sigma training, no understanding of our traditions or governance—but he had union experience, and so the chapter was run like a government union.
I cannot tell you how many times I had to stand in the gap to preserve the Sigma way of operations. Chief among my efforts was ensuring that no future election would ever be held without a candidate forum, and fixing the broken intake system that had again failed to send paperwork and monies to Nationals.
But some matters lie solely within the purview of the president—such as the frequency and tenor of chapter meetings—and all of these conformed to the union model he was comfortable with.
Here’s a quintessential example: the treasurer during that neo president’s first term was a brother we all liked, but he did absolutely nothing as treasurer. He never submitted paperwork to access the bank account, and thus, no financial reports were forthcoming. Would you believe that for the entire two years he held office, having done nothing, the president refused my many attempts to remove him and appoint someone capable?
So, when that same president later stood on his soapbox to chastise the chapter for not having financial reports—hoping to stir someone into action—I was beyond frustrated. His refusal to hold anyone accountable had become the norm, and I would no longer succumb to the bullshit.
Qualification of Worst
For the sake of calrity, the 'worst president' in this story is not the ghost who held office without membership. The true failure began earlier—with the man who butchered the election process, whether through incompetence or deliberate design, to allow a newly initiated neophyte and non-member to win without real opposition. This same president presided over the first locally conducted intake, and it was his direct responsibility to ensure that the process met the standards of Sigma. and that all paperwork and funds were properly submitted. He failed in that sacred duty. Whether through negligence or incompetence, his leadership opened the door to chaos; disorder was normalized, and accountability became optional.
The Erosion of Accountability
After two years as First Vice, during which I led the effort to charter the first international undergraduate chapter in NPHC history, I worked with Regional Director Bro. Calvin Glover to establish The Bahamas as a state within the Southern Region and became its first State Director—stepping away from the chapter executive board.
In the years that followed, my vocal frustration with a chapter devoid of any impetus to meet the standards of any competent organization, much less Phi Beta Sigma, earned me the reputation of being “militant.” A charge I reject. By the standards I was taught in Beta Xi by Eta Sigma, and the years I served in Pi Mu and Alpha Psi Sigma, I was far more lenient than I should have been.
Time and again, accountability was not enforced.
It was not enforced when brothers neglected to pay for their steakout tickets for consecutive years.
It was not enforced when the 2003 intake failed their information assessment but were still initiated.
It was not enforced when the money and paperwork for that line disappeared.
It was not enforced when a member of that line could not produce transcripts proving he met the qualifications for membership.
It was not enforced when the appointed chair of the 2005 Southern Region Conference failed to organize anything, forcing Brother Glover to call me into service as de facto chairman.
Public Success, Private Decay
In fairness, Sigma Bahamas saw many public successes during that period. We had momentum and were well-regarded in the eyes of the public. We even hosted a highly successful regional conference that raised over $10,000 to establish a scholarship endowment fund. Sadly, no accountability was enforced when that money vanished from the books.
We were widely considered the best Greek organization and were able to recruit many reputable men. But again—no accountability was enforced when a chapter president/intake chair crossed multiple lines without submitting paperwork or monies to Nationals. None was enforced when that same individual, now State Director, abused the power of that office to cover up his diversion of over $20,000 in membership dues.
There were those who wanted to avoid holding accountable the men who used their positions of power to prey upon and sexually harass subordinate brothers. It took the courage of a few to stand up against the degeneracy of too many.
The Return and the Remedy
Despite my optimism and faith in the intentions of brothers, I have learned the hard way: when the ideals of the fraternity are perverted to brotherhood for its own sake - when politics, power, prestige, and pleasure replace purpose and sacrifice the resulting corruption is damning to us all.
I turned my back on Sigma Bahamas in 2014 in protest of the gross levels of corruption I could no longer, in good conscience, be a party to. Recently, I’ve been admonished by brothers to whom I remain accountable—men whom I pledged, who never had the chance to see their Dean work—to re-engage in local Sigma affairs. And thus, I am resolved to re-engage.
Let me state this plainly.
The Pledge Culture Initiative exists partially so that those who were never properly taught what Phi Beta Sigma truly is, who are unfamiliar with its culture, its nuances, or its way of doing business, may now have the opportunity to learn how to be and act like Sigmas.
Any member who has the humility to acknowledge the failures of past leadership, the willingness to learn, and the courage to challenge both me and the many brothers who have a true commitment to their oaths, in pursuit of understanding—I will embrace as a brother.
But those who remain driven only by power, prestige, and pleasure will be met with the contempt and disdain owed to anyone who would sabotage our collective mission to uplift and safeguard our families, our communities, and our people from the very forces that were designed to subjugate and oppress.