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SmokingGun
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« Reply #46 on: July 29, 2010, 01:25:01 PM » |
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Here's is Drummer Boy's letter.... in two parts due to limitation:
"Dear Sir:
“We see the essential mission of the [............] Party to be the empowerment of the broad majority of the Bermudian people. We see a New Bermuda, in which the talents of every Bermudian will be mobilized in building a humane society, in which social and economic justice is a reality, not just an ideal.
The [......] Party’s policies and programmes are meant to rekindle hope, to heal Bermuda ‘s present divisions and to replace apathy and alienation with a spirit of optimism and a feeling of oneness and unity. We continue to put Bermuda first, and to put Bermudians first.”
Rumour has it that these are the noble and inspired words that form the mission statement of a certain political party. You would be forgiven for failing to recognize exactly which political party this noble “mission” should be attributed to, but apparently it is the so-called Progressive Labour Party that claims such a mission statement- a party that prides itself on forming Bermuda’s first so-called “labour government”.
Before you form any judgments about who is writing this, let me just say a few words about who I am. I am not in politics nor do I have any desire to be at this time. I have no axe to grind with any politician or political party, and although I am a son of the soil, I am not THE infamous “Son of the Soil”. I am a young black man who has spent most of his adult life voting for the PLP. I am one of those voters who on the 9th November 1998 celebrated what I thought was the birth of a true democratic process where finally voters could express confidence in a new political party taking the reigns of power and relegate the arrogant and complacent incumbent to the Opposition. I celebrated what I thought would be the dawn of a new age, not where manna would fall from the sky, but where finally, as the mission statement above states, there would be an empowerment of the “broad majority of the Bermudian people”. As a labour government one takes this to mean, not just black people, but anyone, black, Anglo or Portuguese, who has previously been disenfranchised or marginalized in this economy. I am talking about those of us who were not able to get a good job in top local companies by virtue of being fortunate enough to have a daddy or uncle in a senior and influential position to do our bidding for us. I refer to those who were never able to make an impact in the international business world because of cultural bias, despite the fact that we were qualified and worked hard. I refer to those local ambitious entrepreneurs who always seemed to fall short of the criteria required to win a major government contract. I refer to the unions, (oh yes remember them?) who for so long pined for the day when they would actually have a labour government in power who would understand and address their needs with at least some degree of empathy.
I recognize and appreciate that the PLP has done some good things over the last ten years, but it would be an understatement to say that I have been disappointed with the extent to which this government has squandered the goodwill and momentum that it was bestowed with after the 1998 election. In fact, my disappointment has rapidly evolved into disgust over the last eighteen months as I have witnessed the exponential deterioration of the moral fiber and integrity of the government under the current leadership of Premier, Dr Ewart Brown.
Premier Brown came into power on a wave of euphoria. There were many who doubted his integrity and were wary of what they saw as an overbearing ego and naked ambition. However, there were many more who felt that as premier, in spite of, or perhaps because of his head strong disposition, and because of his talents he would rise to the occasion to achieve a level of excellence for the country. If the country did well, he would look good. There were many who saw him as Bermuda ‘s version of “New Labour” where the old core principles of the party would be given a modern finish, where he could straddle from negotiating and conversing with CEOs of exempt companies to union bosses. Unfortunately, it would appear that the lure of power and prestige has had such an intoxicating effect on his leadership that you really cannot even call it “leadership”.
It is hard to know where to begin in this regard. There have been accusations of corruption, stealing cedar beams (good one), taking kick backs on government consultancy contracts and handing out lucrative perks to friends and family. We have even had numerous people arrested, not on charges of corruption, but for going out of their way to inform the public of such allegations of corruption. But let me say it is not my intent to accuse anyone of corruption. However, what I would ask anyone to do is to read that mission statement above, in the context of this being a “labour” government, and ask yourself if this government, under this current leadership, remotely resembles what it has set out to do. Ask yourself if this government has kept in line with the core principles upon which the party was founded and made a genuine attempt to empower the disenfranchised.
It is difficult to drive two miles without almost being run off the road by some massive construction trucks which invariably have the names “Island Construction” or “Correira Construction” emblazoned on the side. In every parish you will come across multiple government construction sites that will proudly display the logo of one of these two companies. So let me ask, how much money has government spent paying these two non-unionized Portuguese construction companies on government contracts over the last four years? Exactly where is the money going? Exactly who is getting paid what? What is the infatuation with these two construction companies? Is it just a coincidence we now have Zane DeSilva as an MP? Was it a coincidence that Dennis Correira’s wife is now so involved in the party? Exactly who is being empowered?
The PLP government was very vocal in stating their belief that Jim Butterfield and his crew should not have their lease renewed at the Bermuda Cement Co Ltd, as they felt that the old white families of Bermuda has had their time. They ousted Mr. Butterfield from his position in the most unethical manner only to replace old white money with new white money. What exactly was the point of this exercise?
Whilst in the Opposition the PLP complained bitterly that the UBP were not doing enough to empower Bermudians in the work force. Under this government we have record numbers of expats who are given work permits. Yes, of course we need expats particularly in the area of reinsurance. However, there are many hard-working, well educated Bermudians who continue to feel as though they are not getting a fair deal in the industry. Whilst companies like to give out scholarships to young Bermudians and hire them at entry level underwriting positions the number of Bermudians in decision-making positions within the reinsurance are few and far between. There is still a perception that cultural bias plays a significant part in determining who gets elevated up the ranks in companies. We have some very bright and qualified expats in this country. However, we still have far too many who come here with no special qualifications, who get trained on the job, and are given great exposure on the job, and before you know it they are CFO, SVP or General Counsel. Meanwhile the Bermudian is told he needs more experience or is overqualified. Far too many hard-working, qualified Bermudians are forced to sit back and watch as others enjoy going from middle-class to millionaire in this country, literally overnight. This government has done nothing to address this problem. In fact it is now worse than it was under the UBP. It would appear that so long as exempt company executives buy a $25,000 plate to one of our Premier’s tourism dinners and give a little money to the odd charity then they can have what ever their hearts desire. “Good Corporate Citizenship” is a toothless joke.
Whilst our trade unions are embroiled in a bitter dispute with government to gain the most modest of increases simply to keep pace with the cost of living, our Premier – our labour Premier – is travelling to Washington on a private jet at tax payers’ expense to go and meet one of the most unpopular presidents in the history of the United States to spend twenty minutes talking about significant world issues like, how well Barbara Bush’s knee operation went, and how the weather was in Bermuda. Given that this President will be on his way out in November would it not have made more sense to wait until the new president comes into office and spend tax payers’ money on that trip? What is the point of solidifying a relationship with an outgoing president? Or perhaps our Premier is unsure if he will be around after November, and a last photo opportunity was too good an opportunity to miss, particularly since Tiger Woods will not be coming this year. Right now you have all the trade unions in Bermuda contemplating strike action and our Premier is more concerned about shaking hands and getting his photo taken in Washington . How many more times must we be subjected to another ridiculous photo of our Premier in the newspaper smiling up against some celebrity or politician he has managed to convince to take a photo with him? The question remains, where is the priority for this government?
Ask yourself how much this government is spending on overseas consultants? Why isn’t there a list of all consultants that government has on their tab and how much each one is being paid? Who are these people? What is their experience? What is their relationship to members of the cabinet? Are there any conflicts of interest? What is the vetting process which determines who gets what contract? Who has the final say? What exactly have these consultants achieved? I would hate to think that anyone is getting any kick-backs.
Why do we have the Premier’s half brother, Mr. Philip Butterfield, HSBC’s newest Country Manager (yes, that is the official title) being made chairman of every doggone board in this country? Why do we have members of HSBC coming into the schools to oversee teachers? Do teachers now get to go to HSBC to oversee the bankers? Why does the Premier’s half brother think that he can lecture to Bermuda about education when he cannot even run his own bank efficiently? Education is about creating leaders. Where is the leadership in the management at HSBC? Why are Bermudian professionals at the bank continually complaining that the bank continues to promote foreigners ahead of locals? Why are so many Bermudians leaving, even willing to give up the mortgage subsidy? Perhaps the Premier can direct Rolfe Commissiong to put this topic on the agenda at his next Big Conversation meeting.
As disappointed as I am with the leadership I am more disappointed with those politicians who surround the leader. It is their silence that speaks greater volumes of the moral bankruptcy of the collective leadership. There is a recurring theme with the PLP cabinet members. They remain silent when their voices are most needed to be heard. This is why the PLP has a leadership crisis every three years. When their leader strays from the right path is when they must act. If the leader is too autocratic or lacks integrity and they disagree with his decision then either speak up or resign from cabinet as anyone with an ounce of integrity would do. Instead they remain silent, and only choose to speak up when the deeds have been done and the horse has bolted from the stable. Sadly, there are still some who continue to sit by quietly in cabinet without taking a stance. It is not enough that you are pleasant and you speak eloquently. If you want to be a future leader you must take a stance!! With the silence of the cabinet ministers one is inclined to wonder just how many of them are part-taking in this free for all. How many of them are happy to unethically take crumbs from off the people’s table?
As for the voters I do not know what to say. Winston Churchill once said that “the best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter.” I do not mean to be disparaging to the average voter but I do believe that in this very materialistic society we live in, we as voters have our priorities in the wrong place. In the very week that our Premier was making a mockery of the democratic process in the House of Assembly by trying to stifle debate with the Opposition about the Cocoa Reef fiasco, more people seemed upset about the fact that tickets to see Beyonce at the Music Festival had sold out. As a people we need to hold our leaders accountable. In Washington , they say that whenever a President has low ratings they find an excuse to engage in some military battle with some other nation. In Bermuda, our Premier’s mode of operation in such situations is to make announcements such as, “I’m happy to tell everyone that Tiger Woods will be coming to Bermuda , or Beyonce, or Alicia Keys.”
When will our Premier host a press conference and state: “I am proud to announce that we have solved the housing crisis. I am proud to announce that we have solved the education crisis. I am proud to announce that we have cracked crime. I am proud to announce that there is now a significant influx of qualified Bermudians in management and executive positions in international business. I am proud to announce that we have negotiated a proper settlement with the trade unions that will benefit Bermuda . I am proud to announce that we have made significant strides in leveling out the economic playing field by empowering entrepreneurs in this country beyond just friends and family”? There are many who continue to “comfort” themselves by the fact that at least the UBP is no longer in power. Even if you are the staunchest supporter of your party you must still hold your leaders accountable. To question your leaders is not akin to “selling out”. It merely shows you actually have a brain. It is important you ensure that your leaders are not the ones selling YOU out.
continued....
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