Democracy demands all voices

There are some who believe that the responsibility for filling this opinion page is that of its editor; yet we have so many disgruntled people in our country. Perhaps the blogs are where their expressions of discontent are to be found, but I am too much of an emotional coward to indulge in reading what is often said in the blogs.

We all have the right to have opinions and to express them is a fundamental right if Cayman is truly a democratic nation. In fact all participatory democracies should encourage their citizens to remain involved in every aspect of public policy making and not only to exercise their rights to vote during elections. So I ask the public to excuse me if I too often take more than my share of space in the opinion page of this paper; especially when it can be said that it is more prudent to keep one’s opinions and assessments of the party in power to oneself.

Last year I was asked by Premier McKeeva Bush to host a radio talk show on Radio Cayman. This did not seem odd to me since my letters to this paper and contributions to the Roster talk show have been as objective as possible but perhaps supported the actions and policies of the Premier more than the positions of the Independent member and the Opposition party. Furthermore I am a founding member of the UDP and served four years in Cabinet with Mr. Bush as my leader. Therefore the manner in which I frame my arguments may perhaps be understood and accepted more by the Premier and his UDP followers than by the PPM and its supporters. The Premier never asked me to do propaganda for him or his party, he only told me that the way I had been framing my views was positive for our country because it elevated the daily political discourse and that this was greatly needed.

I have published letters in local papers since 1978, and was fired from two jobs with government as a direct result; therefore, if anyone knows the cost of publicly expressing their opinions in Cayman, then I guess I should. The fact that the Premier cancelled Community Voices, the show I was hosting on Radio Cayman is just another instance of the intellectual divide between me, the nation and others on both sides of the political divide. I believe that the Premier’s actions toward me were because of my inability to reserve my opinions when I have different views and was no different than would have been the action of any other politician in this country, past or present.

Caymanian politicians are in the majority bullies that believe that once you agree with or support some of their policies; or they use our government to do us a favour, we have signed on to support their every action for life. This undemocratic mentality rather than the political party system is what is responsible for the erosion of democracy in our Islands. Perhaps I would still be in office today if I had gone around collecting favours for what I did in the name of the people and with their resources but with all the flaws in my character I was better than that.

I therefore take this opportunity to publicly remind our Honourable Premier and other elected officials and want-to-be politicians that a democratic nation cannot be built if only the opinions of the rich and powerful and those in elected office are debated openly. As a former minister and member of our Legislative Assembly who served with Mr. McKeeva Bush, I had reasons to hope that he would have showed more respect for my loyalty and intellect than he has so far demonstrated to me and our country.

Frank McField