When we talk about the Cayman Islands with people from the outside world the first thing they will say to you is ‘oh, Cayman Islands is where all the rich people live and have their money’.
Little do they know that most of the people that live in Cayman are still poor compared to the real rich people of this world. Our people are still in poverty.
But why do you think that is so on an island that perhaps only has about 57,000 or so people when at the same time Government in some years spends hundreds of millions? We are poor and do not have proper services to live.
Many of the people do not have a proper place to live and are always having a hard time to make ends meet. Many that have houses are losing them to the banks, along with the land that perhaps was given to them as a birth right from parents or grandparents.
When you really look at the amount of poverty that is here on Cayman in this day and age and then you listen to the large amount of millions that are spent, given away or wasted on foolishness, you will get a proper understanding of why we have this large amount of poverty with us still.
The people’s money is not used properly for the people, for the ones in charge of this money find ways to spend it that really do not benefit the people.
More and more since 2004 the people of the Cayman Islands have been slipping back more and more into poverty, but the pay cheques of the leaders have been going up. More money is being given away and at the same time more people have become jobless.
Now we also have on top of this more children coming out of school and joining the ranks of the jobless and poor. Don’t the leaders know what happens to poor hungry people that find their backs against the wall?
We should not have the level of poverty and joblessness that we have now facing our people if the money that is collected by the Government is used wisely.
But we are not so lucky to have great leaders with proper plans and vision for our people in the right positions on our Islands to work properly with the people to make sure we all live good. And without great plans approved by the people and no vision, the people continue to suffer.
The way millions are spent on this Island is like a kindergarten child with a lot of candy giving it away at recess, knowing very well that they can replace them the next day because his daddy has a store. Our millions are not being given away to our people, for if they were, I would not be writing this letter.
So to all of you Caymanians out there who know that this is true and it is wrong for the leadership of this country to waste our money on foolish ideas, giveaways and trips – speak out against it.
For it is helping to keep us in poverty. Remember, the people’s money belongs to the people to help take us out of poverty and make us all live better.
People that are happy and living good do not have time for crime.
Emile S. Levy
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Your writing brought back a memory.
I’m thinking back to the mid 80s when there were only about 18,000 on island.
I was walking along the road, across from a gas station, watching a group of gentlemen enjoying their beers around the pump. It was a Sunday!
A car pulled up, stuffed to the brim, filled with women dressed in their Sunday best: their best dress, the Sunday Hat and hands covered with lace gloves.
They all got out and proceeded with a proper tongue lashing towards those men.
The brightest (?) one of the bunch, the one who’d probably had the most beer so far, decided he had something very smart to say back.
That’s when the largest of the Church-Goers grabbed him by the ear and up-sided him to the back of the head. Nothing further was said or done and I thought it quite respectful on both parties’ behalf.
All in all, I thought this entire scene was quite funny, having a good chuckle, until She turned Her attention to me.
The day was hot and humid and I had my shirt unbuttoned apparently Too Low, in Her estimate, on the Lord’s Day.
I wasn’t asked, but told, to button up (to the chin!).
I did so immediately, having a concern of being up-sided the head as well.
I don’t know why I had to express it, but it was a good and rich memory and I miss those times.
Were we poor then? I don’t know quite how to answer that.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that the island has become richer, and yet somehow we are the poorer for it, in many, many ways.
Editor(s); I don’t care whether you print this one or not, but I had a smile on my face the whole time I was writing it.
Myself and others I am sure, really dont’ want to hear this drivel, when the CAVE people put a stop to all job creation on the island. You want to put blame on someone. Put it on the CAVE people. The very same Caymanian people who complain there are no jobs!
The current government has had MANY job creation ideas. Only to be turned down by protesters. By the same protesters that complain there is no work.
Can’t have jobs without physical progress. That means building things. Some of which will house people, who will have jobs within these buildings, who will also create more jobs. How can you have jobs if there are no buildings to put the people in?! hmmmm? What is there not to understand here.
whilst there is obviously some poverty here it is relatively small and compared to many Caribbean countries or Latin American countries even the poor are well off. To say Caymanians live too poorly is a rather misguided statement, go look at people in Haiti, Honduras, Bolivia…and see how well off even the poorest here are. Like everywhere in the world there is a noticable growing divide between rich and poor, but to say people live in poverty here is a bit rich.