PPM’s Hew calls new coalition government ‘marriage of convenience’

The People’s Progressive Movement leader Joey Hew says the formation of a new coalition government consisting of two rival parties and independents does not reflect “the will of the people”.

Commenting on the post-election discussions that led to the alliance between The Caymanian Community Party, the Cayman Islands National Party and three independents to form a coalition government, Hew said in a statement, “Negotiations have once more chosen the government and not the will of the people.”

He added, “Sadly the country may find itself in the same position it was in after the 2021 elections with a marriage of convenience comprised of several mismatched partners.”

Hew’s comments came in a statement after the TCCP and the CINP, along with three independents, on Thursday declared they had joined forces to form a government.

The election results and the subsequent horse trading to pull together a coalition of successful candidates closely mirrored the situation following the 2021 election. The PPM failed to win enough party seats to form a government in that election and, after nearly a week of negotiations, a diverse group of independents came together to make up the PACT administration, which went on to have a fractured tenure.

This year’s parlaying between the successful candidates across the various camps took a considerably shorter time, with the new government members-elect delivering a letter signed by 11 of them to Governor Jane Owen by 8pm Thursday, 17 hours after the last election result was announced.

Cayman’s new government, with TCCP leader André Ebanks as premier, and CINP’s Gary Rutty as deputy premier, will be sworn in on Tuesday, 2 May, at the House of Parliament.

As well as four members from each party, the new government is also joined by independents Rolston Anglin, Jay Ebanks and Isaac Rankine.

Hew congratulated his party’s opponents in his statement, adding, “I hope that you will govern with integrity, wisdom, and a commitment to the values that unite us as a nation. We may have been divided in this contest, but the challenges ahead – building a stronger economy, ensuring equality, and safeguarding our future – demand that we work together.”

He added, “There will always be another fight, another cause, another day for us to rise. Let this moment remind us that democracy is powerful because it empowers each voice, each vote. And though we may have different ideas, our shared goal remains the same: a brighter, more inclusive future for everyone.”

Hew also expressed gratitude to the “thousands of Caymanians who elected seven members of our team to Parliament”, as well as to the three PPM members who ran but did not win, saying they remained a “part of the PPM family”.

Instead of returning to the House as head of government, as he’d hoped, Hew will now be going back as leader of the opposition, a role he has held since October last year, when he took over from his PPM colleague and former party leader Roy McTaggart.

In his statement Thursday, Hew vowed that he would not stop fighting for the principles his party believed in.

“You have my unwavering commitment that I will continue to serve, advocate, and champion the causes that brought us together in the first place,” he said.

Read Joey Hew’s full statement here.