Editor’s note: The following is the full text of a statement sent by Premier McKeeva Bush Friday afternoon in response to comments made Thursday by Governor Duncan Taylor regarding investigations into the Premier and claims by the Premier that civil servants in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office were out to “ruin” Cayman.
“Can the Governor tell us what he or the Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials have done to help the Cayman Islands? When Cayman is criticized in London have they stood up for us? No!
“We have suffered unemployment. Has he tried to help us? What has he done? He has done nothing of substance to help these islands.
“We received funding for housing. We set up a committee, and he sent the auditor general in and frightened the daylight out of the civil servant working on it. We couldn’t get anything done for months. We finally had to change that person as the chair.
“He opposed Dr. Shetty’s hospital project and I had to tell him “you don’t like this but you have no vote in cabinet” He didn’t support me hiring Lord Blencathra. This is just a bit of what I’ve had to put up with; that’s the way he has performed.
“He’s done nothing for 3 years to help us but to throw cold water on whatever we were trying to do. And when the London press went after him a few days ago, he made the commissioner send out that statement on me to draw attention away from him, and his troubles. To top it all off, he went and got an extension of his time in Cayman without so much as a hint to me as Premier or to my Cabinet because he figured I would oppose it. That is not how Governors are supposed to behave. Simple good manners would tell you that you should make your intentions known in such matters.
“He has stealthily and insidiously undermined what I’ve been trying to do to get our economy off the ground and get jobs for people. Meanwhile he’s got an extension of time for his job where he’s never had it so good!
“The Governor made reference to Minister Bellingham stating during his visit that he was confident that the police was handling the investigation properly. That statement of course was made before the highly inappropriate press release from the Commissioner of Police. It is wrong to infer that the Minister endorsed that statement.
“The Opposition in Cayman is so power hungry that they will say and do anything to embarrass and destroy me and the Government. The Governor knows this and so he plays the UK’s age old game of “divide and conquer”.
“It is not Minister Bellingham that I’m concerned about. It is the Governor and the FCO Directorate who have done nothing to help Cayman.
“I have not done anything illegal to cause a probe into what is termed financial irregularities and I have not imported or caused to be imported any explosive material.
“I implore the good people of Cayman to call for an end to this tearing down of reputations and the good name of Cayman. We will all suffer for it if we do not; and we as a people are capable of far better than this. Let us show the world who we are. Let us live up to our well established reputation as God-fearing, law-abiding people.”
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I will let others comment on the rest of this but if Duncan Taylor really did object to the hiring of Lord Blencathra he has just gone way up in my estimation.
I would try to believe him if he would explain how the Stan Thomas letter is just a real estate bill and how giving all the cruise passenger fees to the Chinese for 50 years will mean a free dock for Cayman.
Mr. Bush it is time to go. You have done nothing for this island except line the pockets of the already wealthy and yourself.
Truly, the Premier has no one to thank but himself for all the investigations against him, personally in my opinion he has done nothing by taint the integrity of the Office he holds and is doing detrimental damage to these Islands by not be forthcoming! If he were the right thinking person he would step aside as Premier until the investigations are concluded against him, he is behaving like a bad child instead of a leader in my opinion! His fellow Ministers and UDP members of the LA are no better than him for not forcing him to step down, they are playing a tricky hand in doing so, because if he goes down he is taking them with him! They might be wise and save face and their political careers if they do what is right and force him to step down! Enough said!
I may be naive but I am still hoping that the Premier will do the right thing. This back and forth finger pointing is nonsense. Why does the Premier not issue a formal statement sworn before a JP or notary explaining the Stan Thomas invoice and the explosives shipment? He could present this sworn statement to the police as he is clearly now aware of the investigation and he could read the contents to the public in a broadcast statement. That would clear up a lot of the cloud that is now hanging over government. Why does he not make a public statement on this very important matter?
This is being picked up by the international media.
Check out Reuters – http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/03/cayman-premier-idUSL1E8G3NCM20120503
Tictoc, Carpediem and Jose P what rubbish! Answer a few common sense questions for me.
1. If simple accusations are all that’s needed to remove men in power, what is to stop the next Premier (or President, or Prime Minister, or Senator, or) from facing the same situation? Someone makes an accusation, and they are forced to step aside. No one could sit in the seat for more than an hour.
2. The original investigation of financial irregularities has been going on for 2 years and 3 months. Still we have no answers. Don’t you think if the investigation had produced something credible by now, we would have heard about it? Time to poop or get off the pop as far as I am concerned.
3. Do you think 2 years is a reasonable time to spend on an investigation? What if he does step aside, and TWO YEARS later he is cleared of wrong doing, is that fair to him?
4. I hear people crucifying him for not making a public statement, while others crucify him for making a statement on Cayman 27. If YOU were under investigation, would you make statements to the media regarding specific facts of the case as you are asking him to do? If so, you should fire your attorney!
5. Do you have ANY evidence whatsoever that would suggest he is NOT cooperating with the RCIPS?
6. Do you think the RCIPS is doing a spectacular job in these investigations and performing their duties to the best of their abilities in an objectionable and timely manner?
7. Do you think the opposition members have nothing to gain by publicly campaigning for the premier to step down?
Considering your less than intelligent comments, it is not surprising that you are in favor of the PPM government. So, I have just two more questions for you.
1. What did they do the last time they were in power?
2. What new ideas have they put forward that would help advance the Cayman Islands?
Justice and the Truth shall prevail. The Lord doesn’t sleep, he only ears pajamas.
Gets better..
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-cayman-premierbre8421hl-20120503,0,6583462.story
To liberalkman, like I said Enough said! Since my comments are so less than intelligent, I would just like to say I thought Einstein had died over a 50 years ago, but it is great he has been reincarnated and is being the great genius as usual here in the Cayman Islands!
I think the three thumbs down on my posting of the link to Reuters speaks volumes for the mentality of some of the trolls who visit this website.
How can you disagree with a simple statement of fact?
Would you prefer to pretend it has not happened?
Following good international procurement standards by allowing the tender committee to do their job, and running it by the Auditor General seem like excellent advice to me.
Cutting red tape in the name of expedience and paying someone two million because the tape cut severed good procurement practices and could not hold up in court is bad.
I am so happy that the UK has intervened into this (expletive)backward practice of over-riding our senior civil servants experts, who knows how to tender a bid and understands that once the bid is put out there are rules to follow and consequences for failing to.
The UK and the foreign office coordinator tasked with insuring good governance and citizen care of these islands should review the cost’s associated with their obligations. The cost’s of realigning the Turks and Caicos seem extremely high, similarly the rumored high cost associated to Operation Tempura/Cleat. Consultancy like procurement should also seek to provide good value for money..
Having the UK stand guard over us is not free or should it be, but we must expect good value for money. If these islands are not using economy of scale by seeking out already established offices in the UK then we should. An example is, the UK has a standing army so we don’t need one. What else do they have we should be using in mutual support.
The Governor should be in the best position to point us to these cost saving services, and proactively involved to avoid the Turk cacaos scenario and the Pending China harbor economic retrograde.
Think the white paper will clear up some of these adventures.
Premier Bush needs to mind his flapping mouth. Just because his imperious and arrogant nature has caused him to run afoul of various rules, and he is embarrassed about investigations, does not mean he is free to jeopardize the quasi-autonomy of the Cayman Islands.
Does he wish to go the route of the Turks Islanders? Even a rabid dog knows better than to gallop off at full speed regardless if he has a long leash. The longer the leash, the more abrupt and dire the snap when one reaches the end.
More of this balderdash from the premier, and it may well be time for Caymanians to take immediate steps to remove this blowhard (or worse) from office, before the UK does it for us!
We have seen the results of independence (Jamaica) and we have seen the result of insubordination and unmediated corruption (Turks and Caicos); we have a good thing, let us maintain it!
@liberalkman…well said sir (or madam)!!!! However, I am not surprised by the number of thumbs down that appear below your comment. Although you make excellent points, some people on these islands prefer to behave like gangster lemmings, rather than listen to factual and accurate observations from intelligent individuals that see the whole picture…
Whoa, he has finally spun out of control. Blasting the Governor in public is completely unacceptable behavior. Why would he do it? I suspect he will be in a position soon to blame others for his ultimate demise. I was setup Mon. Yeah right.
Investigations are just that, investigating something peculiar, let those run their courses, do not speculate, they soon come.
There are rules of engagement and for many good reasons. Learn to play by the rules and be good at it. Nobody can criticize you for that. The UK accepts the CI procurement process. Use it. Bully outside the rules and your done, done, done.
We are an Overseas Territory and look what shameful silliness you have done and how badly that will affect our reputation with the UK and elsewhere.
Please pack up your ball and go bye-bye because now almost nobody wants Mac the Bully anywhere on this island. You sir are indeed done, done done.
Just watch, your Buds will jump ship rather rapidly.
Good, bad or indifferent the Governor is the Governor. This should have been kept offline. That’s RESPECT. You blew it Mon.
But I am quite sure there is a method to your madness and that will soon come too. Turks and Caicos comes to mind also.
True to form, really. The only time he told the simple truth was when as a director of a bank, he didn’t understand what was going on, or hadn’t troubled to find out or asked questions, or whatever the going excuse was.