Chuckie plans 3rd way
(CNS): Although he says has not ruled out a return to the People’s Progressive Movement, the former tourism minister has said that the more likely scenario is that he will be involved in a “third political option” by the next general election. In the wake of the PPM’s leadership change, CNS contacted Charles Clifford to ask if he planned to return to his former political party. He revealed that while it was fair to say his political ideologies were more closely aligned with the PPM base than with any other party or group and he had not completely ruled it out, he was focusing on the emergence of a third option but did not elaborate on what kind of political force it would be.
Although he said he may share political sentiments, he was disappointed that the PPM had not made a real change in its leadership by electing a new chairman, as well as restructuring its executive committee and general council. He also pointed out that the party had failed to elect a deputy opposition leader. This, he said, fuelled the perception that the PPM is indecisive and suggested there was a problem finding a candidate who is prepared to serve in the role.
The new leader, however, has confirmed that the party does not have provision for deputy leader in its constitution and the provision in the country’s constitution for the post is not a constitutional requirement. Alden McLaughlin, the new PPM leader, also recently noted that the party membership had not chosen to nominate a deputy leader.
Clifford, who left the PPM in August last year stating the opposition was not aggressive enough in expressing the people’s disappointment and its disagreement with government policy, said he believed the PPM faced a conflict between the leadership and the party base. While the leadership and brand is “very clearly liberal in its objectives, messages and image”, he said the party base was conservative in its views.
“This is indicative of the fact that our political party system is still very much in its infancy, but the big question is whether the PPM will be able to reconcile those differences and, if they are able to, what will be the consequences on the current leadership and brand,” Clifford stated.
He said that any political group that he would be a part of in the future would be committed to very specific issues, such as establishing single member constituencies and the principle of one person one vote, stamping out corruption in government and holding people accountable, passing a meaningful National Conservation Law, protection of the local and expat workforce, re-engineering the education system, an economic policy which promotes and protects core industries, and introducing a political culture that reflects Caymanian values.
“I believe that as a country we have made a mistake in adopting a political party model and political culture that has failed so many other countries,” Clifford said. “It seems equally clear to me that the majority of people in our country share my view on this issue and is desperately hoping for a political alternative.”
Both the PPM and the UDP, he suggested, are in denial but as the political party system is still in its infancy here it was not too late to reshape it. “It’s time to get back to the basics and demonstrate Caymanian ingenuity in creating a political organisation and political culture that will be in the best interests of our unique Cayman society. It is simply not good enough to adopt a failed system.”
He said Caymanians had to have the courage to reject the current political structures and build their own political party structures and political culture from the ground up. Having been part of the system, Clifford said he now recognised that the country has to change course.
“The question is, how many others in the ‘system’ will step forward and admit the same or will I have to stand alone?” he asked, making it clear that the voting public could expect to see Clifford’s name on the ballot paper in 2013, be it as an independent, part of a new political party or group or even back in the fold of a reformed PPM.
Category: Headline News
Chuck is right. We’re at the crossroads and anyone who challenges the two political parties will be attacked.
Well Chuck doesn’t fear attacks because he knows his position is right and we the people agree with him.
Ok now PPM and UDP bloggers go ahead and attack me now too….doesn’t phase me one bit.
In Mr. Alden’s response to Mr. Charles Clifford’s statement he has closed the door on Mr. Clifford’s return to the PPM.
Not a very wise move Mr. Alden. It shows that you are not ready for the Leadership. Rather than extending an olive branch to Mr. Clifford you chose to close the door.
Perhaps Mr. Alden you don’t fully appreciate how difficult it will be for you to attract candidates to your party. Although I doubt that Mr. Clifford wouldhave returned to the PPM at least he had enough political judgment to leave that door open for the future if the PPM demonstrated a real change in the Leadership and structure.
It is interesting Mr. Alden that you did not address the very real issuess raised by Mr. Clifford in his statement to the media.
I have to be honest Mr. Alden your response sounded very McKeevalike which suggest that you fear Mr. Clifford’s deep thinking just as McKeeva does.
Perhaps you may choose to now turn to the issues !!!
‘Chuckie’ a rather fitting name, I would say, Is a hard headed, hot headed, egotistical, better than you, no compromise, big mouth, self serving politician that would make Mac look like a little boy,(more than he already does) if he were left alone to do so. Why on earth is he starting a third party when 99% of the voting public agree that ‘parties’ in Cayman in general are self serving entities that DO NOT bode our country well but simply spend their entire lives fighting each other for POWER??? Chuckie cannot fit in with the PPM because he has HIS OWN agenda to put CHUCKIE on top of the world just like McKeeva. We do not need any more of this b_ _ _ S_ _ _ Cayman. What we need and want is GOOD GOVERNANCE. We are never going to achieve that by giving more and more power to more and more ego powered PARTIES. One thing I DO admire Chuckie for is his ability to STAND UP to McKeeva where most of the rest of our political entirety would much rather wet their pants. Two humongous egos very well met, I would say. We don’t need egos. We need good government. Like the one we enjoyed in a crime free and economically stable environment prior to the majority of us being jacked into voting the previously unsatisfactory UDP BACK into power.
Keep the pressure on Chuckster…….the PPM and UDP bloggers are running out of steam already. They are deadly afraid of the prospect that the “established parties” are under threat from a third group.
Stand up for what you know is right Bro.
There must be a third way because the two “ways” we have now simply ain’t working !!!
Don’t worry we see through what they did to you…….there is corruption at the highest levels of our government and they didn’t want that exposed.
Where is the Commission of Enquiry into the actual corruption in our government which you exposed ??
Ironic that there was a Commission of Enquiry into the exposure of the corruption and not the corruption itself and no one made any fuss about it. Not even the PPM Leader at the time………the big question is why didn’t Kurt kick up a storm about this and why didn’t he insist that there be a proper Commission of Enquiry into the actual corruption such as the one that took place in the Turks and Caicos Islands?????
Perhaps the corruption runs deeper than we think !!!!
If Chuckie was the only person running in Bodden Town, he could not get my vote.
He plays the people for fools jumping on which ever band wagon he thinks will get people to vote for him.
This is ONE time I could agree with what his former Leader Kurt said “Not on the kindest of mornings” could I vote for Chuckie.
Hum ! after reading these many post I have come to the conclusion : That it will be a 3rd. party in the race and will be interesting to see who will be with who. As far as Mr. Clifford leading that third party I will have to be much more convinced. I still remember the Judges words.
Chuckie I guess you miss the lux life, you know what i mean World Class travelling with you know who, living large with endless spending of Govt funds in 5 Star hotels & spas, flying first class all over the world….. I guess being unemployed for the last two years gave you the chance to feel what you’ve been lost.
I hope the people of Cayman is not so blindsighted to think it will be different the next time around because a leapard dont change its colors.
MR CLIFFORD THERE ARE MANY BLOGGERS HERE that do not support you but yiou must not make that worry you. some are UDP SUPPORTERS AND SOME FROM PPM. the one thing is that they quickly forghet that you was the only man that could handle the premier,if kirk and aldin had the b—ls you had things would have been better for PPM. one thing KIRK can say is he started the PPM BUT HE ALSO KILLED IT TOO. if they had made the challenge durig the last election we would not been in the mess we are in today remember how they stop the march on the sale of the glass house. (no guts) XXX
its Kurt not Kirk – and please get real! We need Chuckie back like we need a hole in the head. Its time for serious people to come forward and represent the country not people who intend to just attack the UDP and their policies. We know the UDP and PPM are a waste of space…nd this “mystery 3rd option” is just a suspense game he is playing to get attention.. if he was serious he would have said what he is panning to do, its not like he doesnt already have it planned. Im so tired of the politics games……
This story only contains a part of Mr. Clifford’s statement to the press. I would suggest that you all read his full statement which is on Cayman 27’s website so you can have the full story.
Makes perfect sense to me. We say these are the kinds of politicians we want but yet when they come forward we want to tear them down because, unfortunately, that seems to be the Caymanian way.
We better wise up and start supporting our very own and identify which ones are really for us the people and which ones are mere puppets of the business sector.
Oh no……..Chuckie stepping on those PPM and UDP toes again. Be careful Bo Bo you know that hurts and they will continue to scream because stepping on a toe can hurt just as much as a buck toe Bo Bo. Remember dem days ?
Anyway for what’s it worth let um scream……step, step, step on dem toes Chuckster !!!
Anything would be better than the mess of bush and julie.
Come on now Chuck-Chuck, you know better than that. This is just playing into the dictator’s hands. Leave well alone! All hands must be on deck together to fight the bad, we cannot do it divided amongst ourselves!
A three way sounds great. Now if I could just convince the wife…
Tracy from swamp says we are voting for Ozzie, Chuckie,
I think I’d have to pass on that one, sounds painful
You’re right pal, it might just make getting screwed a little more interesting.
Chuckie did nothing while he was an Elected Government Minister.
He rarely spoke to people and his supporters.
He failed to seek his colleague’s views and ideas before running off to make decisions.
He NEVER attended a PPM Executive meeting until the writing was on the wall.
He acts like a spoiled prep school prepubescent.
He caused the Governor to call for a commission of enquiry into his activities as a Civil Servant.
He did not mix with his constituents,
He snubbed his dam nose at his supporters on the PPM Executive.
He left his Civil Servants job without notice.
He left the PPM without having the courtesy of discussing this decision with the Chairman or Party Leader.
He only smiles when another person makes a mistake.
He believes that Cayman has adopted the wrong kind of political party sytem, but he would dearly love to be a part of a third one.
He expects the PPM to elect a new chairman, change their constituion to allow for a Deputy Leader. Well all these things he could have initiated, but he choose to leave.
Other than all that has been stated above, he is a really good leader and nice guy!
I hope that he grows up before the next election!.
Kurt screwed Charles a few times. The last time he shafted Charles is when he refused to legally support him and Mr. Osborn in the election deal when Kurt said PPM could not afford legal action. That was Horse manure. The party chairman and deputy chairman are from a firm that could do the work but they did not. The other screwing was when Charles wanted to march on the selling of government buildings and Kurt lost whatever backbone he had and pulled the rug from under Charles again. For a party like the PPM, I am totally surprised they refuse to use the legal weapon that is always available to them but use excuse after excuse not too. This makes them not a serious threat to the UDP and sometimes ridiculous looking. I do hope that the new leader changes this pattern of behavior. It is no wonder that Charles is keeping is options open because there is no guarantee that things have changed. That makes him smart then the average politician.
Its a pity we don’t have more people like Charles Clifford in the two political parties that will stand up and admit what iswrong.
They’re all followers except perhaps two of them.
Arden is just full of mouth…….no action behind it. Check it out !
IF MR CVLIFFORD RUN IN BODDEN TOWN i will vote for him. i wasted my vote the lost on mark joke joke. it is noway in god heaven that you people cannot see that clifford is a better man for the job than the two we now have. i drive through boddentown every day and i do not see any of thier promises being worked on . The only thing that i see them stop was the ramp that was going by the pub lic beach . This was stopped because they say ossie would sell too much gas. has they stop the flooding in cumber avenue yet. i m ust agree that had two clean up along the beach, mostly by the public beach where the D.O.E. CLEANS WEEKLY . i do not see any of them on the road side by people house drinking andd eating looking support. they need to go go go gone
Oh yeah these are good reasons to vote for Chuckie..Come on people stop this buying of politicians. The mentality that if he does something for me personally then I will vote for him is absolute stupidity. They all make promises that they don’t keep. As far as i am concerned I don’t need anything personal nor do I need to buy any politician..I just need them to do what is right for the country..By the way, you have three politicians now…and oh yeah another PPM’er, "has been," pension/salary double dipping, do nothing politician..I have not heard one word out of him since getting elected..maybe PPM would have done better to push Chuckie than Tony because at least Chuckie will continue to run his mouth..Where is Anthony by the way????
I will reserve judgement on Mr. Clifford until I hear his stance on the abomination that is the as yet unrepaired fence at PPM HQ. Should he choose to return to the PPM, this must be the highest priority on his agenda.
ps; Movember is over.
Movember? I cannot believe yet at the same time it is very obvious that people like you cannot find anything of some kind of substance to dis the PPM with. You are living in La La land my friend. We have a man signing obnoxious deals that are costing this country millions of dollars, threatening to destroy the Caymanian birthright that is our North Sound, and again handing out millions of dollars in exchange for advice like ‘spend millions more of the idiots dollars to build an oil refinery that will certainly finish destroying our land, our people, our waters and our economy’, and you insist on worrying about some little insignificant private owned fence somewhere in some not exactly posh neighborhood? GET A LIFE, my friend.
The Chuckster yesterday, The Chuckster today and The Chuckster tomorrow !
Keep it going Sir…….I know you expected the attacks from the UDP and PPM machinery and as usual they are so predictable with their CNS comments. Their establishment is being threatened…….oh my. Could become very interesting.
I like your point too about the PPM Leadership and brand being liberal and the PPM base conservative. I thought exactly the same thing. Just wait until the real provisions of Alden’s Constitution start to bite. What a quandry !!
– MY OBSERVATION –
Chuckie is a former member of the PPM! I won’t be surprise that he is creating another party so as to prevent others from starting a Third One that would “successful” oppose PPM and UDP. It’s a political ploy and strategy to just keep twoparties in the arena! He is definitely still loyal PPM principles, but pretend to be opposing with a Third option as to funnel the voter’s attention away from any UDP or newly third party option. Besides his views and Aldens are pretty much the same! Yes, we definitely need a third option, a new party in the House, but not a Chuckie Cheese Party! What he is trying to do, is create a split in the political landscape so as to ensure PPM (weak in numbers) does not have a new oppostion to contend with! It is a TRICK! It is the same old politrix! People would be fool to start a party with Chuckie (Alden’s Friend) as leader! What we need now is a third option, a party with new faces and political persuasion – not the same old ideologies of UDP and PPM!
Political parties polarise people, set neighbour against neighbour and are only successful due to the old old hypothesis of "divide and rule". What Cayman desperately needs is less political parties and an Legislative Assembly of leaders looking to the future for all Cayman’s residents – citizens and expats
DEAR CHUCKIE,
As nice a man as you are, please do not waste your time for when you were in office you did not take meetings or appointments from the public, did not communicate with your public and isolated yourself away from your people and the voters who supported you.
Enjoy your retirement and help your country by throwing your support behind others who represent your common ideas and your poilitics. You are an intelligent man who has allot to give others in politics.
Chuckie I want to know why should the people of Bodden Town trust you this time? Yes you are intelligent but that is to your advantage, we want more than that. You hid behind the cloak when you were in and did not associate with your people. Mr Osborne Bodden did, he remained the same old Ozie, I dont care what they say about him, and Mr Anthony Eden only made promises he knew he was not going to keep. I have voted for years straight and split, and what I have discovered is that you all are for self after you get in. No one sees you. XXXXX
I support Chuckie over Ossie and Tony because Chuckie does not speak with a cow cod but he certainly speaks with clarity and purpose !!!
I don’t think Tony likes to speak !
Tony has no leadership qualities. He failed his party just like he failed his country. Just because the people of BT vote this fool in every time, that’s on them. Tony was the world’s worst Health Minister.
Mr. Clifford; can you name your achievements during the time in Government; cause as far asmy memories served me the only things you achieved were the "reopening of the Royal Watler Terminal" (taking down the name plaque with Mckeeva Bush and replaced it with Charles Clifford); relocating Sir Turtle on Cayman Airways and contracting expensive Luftansa (SP). You spent four years talking about the go east initiative – i guess you are still trying to figure out east from west. Although I dont blame you for believing that you are the best thing since slice bread, cause you have some people who constantly hype you. Charles Clifford you remind me of Sarah Palin – all reved up, roaring and going no where. We the voting public of Bodden Town sent you on "political retirement last election" and we hope you would get the message and stay there. I dont think you got it that you were only elected in the first place because people respected Mr. Eden and felt like giving you a chance – not that they really believed in you. Although I cannot control the votes in my family – as voting is a person’s democratic right and each person should be free from any family, friends or associate to cast their ballot as they see fit, I can assure you from my knowledge and conversations with my household neither of the five eligible voters would give you a vote. I wonder who would join you in making up your third party. Also I hope the PPM keep you out as you did not have the decency to discuss with them your intention to leave – I think they found out through the media. You see your track record – depart your employment of 23 years with hours notice; depart your political party of which you were a government minister and the party found out via media. I need not say no mor.
Can’t help you 07:10….you’re just a Mckeeva follower with acute memory loss. There is no point in wasting time with the likes of you. You will always be following Mac around with your hand out……just the way Mac likes it.
***** Chuckie is just like PPM in most of his political idealology. It won’t make a big difference if he starts a new party. What we need for the Business community and the country as a whole, is a Cayman Islands Libertarian Party and then you will see real opposition! LIBERTARIANS ARE FOR SMALL GOVERNMENT, FISCAL DISCIPLINE, AND MORE LIBERTY TO DO WHAT YOU WANT WITH YOUR MONEY (i.e., DECREASED FEES, PERMITS, AND DUTIES), etc… BUT Chuckie and the rest of them seem to support BIG GOVERNMENT, MORE FEES, RESTRICTIVE LAWS, AND A SMALLER SIZE PRIVATE SECTOR! To such parties, weneed real Opposition. *****
CNS: Libertarian, can you avoid writing in capitals. If there’s too much written in upper case I just delete the comment regardless.
laissez-faire!…. is that what u mean?
please be advised that our country is funtioning in that way now under the name’s, UDP &/or the PPM just pick one….. (UDP dictatorship of the people & libertairian to the money man & the PPM good old boys club to the people and libertirian to the money man)……
we dont just need a name change to "Cayman Islands Libertarian Party" or a new party with that name for the truth to be reviled in order to have, quote "real opposition" old boy!,
what we need is a new way of thinking and behaving, let our words match or actions & visa versa, cause!…. that would be REAL OPPOSITION to the…. do as you want, as long as you want or as long as the people (we the people) lack the BALL@ to stand up and say, ENOUGH is ENOUGH already…..
"SMALL GOVERNMENT"……. "FISCAL DISCIPLINE" needs to begin at home in order that having praticed it there, its implementation is then well worth the years of disipline by the exlemperary men and women elected by the people, for the people, to then do so in Parliment that all (government & private sector alike) comply and the COUNTRY and its PEOPLE benifit.
now mine un’ny self!…. it naw only da bodden town bis’nez man that gaw cow cod ya naw, i gaw one 2!
clifford…you were part of the team that ran the biggest deficit in the history of the country and the elctorate removed you accordingly…..don’t forget the basics!
I wish you people would stop blaming the PPM for the deficit. Caymanians are sensible people. The deficit was caused by a WORLDWIDE FINANCIAL RECESSION, not by the PPM. Look at the new Government Admin Building. Your Premier has caused a bigger deficit than the PPM. Why don’t you stand up to him or are you getting the well-known handouts. If the Governor does not use his executive power and dissolve the LA, we won’t have anything to talk about soon. MONEY BIN DONE LONG AGO.
I love these debates. PPM followers say we did nothing. UDP said you did everything. The truth lies in the middle. Not everything can be blamed on the world economic downturn. At the same time it is obvious that it played a major role. Also in the PPM’s support there is the arguement that the major project of building the school in the eastern district should have been carried out a long time ago. At the very least finances should have been put in place when the world’s economy was healthy. The same can be said about the admin office.
haha…always funny to see the ppm trying to blame the ‘global economic recession’ for their gross over spending and economic mismanagement….
ps: recessions in us/uk/eu were caused by banking collapse and credit crunch…both of which have not happened in cayman…(yet)
Anon 09:07 where do you live. Are your remarks indicative of your level of intelligence. I guess what you are saying is that we felt no economic recession. That is a joke.
So if there is a recession in the US and the people dont travel to Cayman, where do we get tourist?
When business’ in Cayman is downsizing due lost of profits is that the PPM as well?
We have too many people like yourself that is so party oriented that you ignore facts to satisfy your own and your parties needs. That is why party politics is not good for Cayman. I prefer a politician go into the house and use his brain to think if things are good for the country not the party.
But on their worse day, the PPM was still a whole lot better than the UDP!!
07:11 Sorry I cannot agree with you on that.
You only have to live four years of your life being "sorry" for a decision you once made, friend.Isn’t that wonderful?
Chuckie..where u runnin? LALA Land because I’m sure it can’t be BT…come on Chuckie…go get a real job and forget about the politics..You had your shot and you failed miserably..Enough with the grandstanding and one upmanship..It’s time to get real..
Cayman needs fresh blood not pissed off, "has been" politicians looking to reclaim their power.
He won’t rule out going back to the PPM if and when the independant movement fizzles out. In other words he still needs a home to go too
yawn, yawn……
STEVE I COULD SMELL THIS COMING. i am glad that you had the guts to say what the problem is with the PPM , and its leaders. you can put your thied party from now. i hope that you can convince arden to join you. the ppm leadership do not want to listen with anybody else, but them self. the previous leader could not make a decision for being in fear that some might be object to it . i hope he has leant that you cannot please everybody. hope the new leader leant from the pass and accept that he has to be a people person and stop being so full of HIMSELF STEVE I WILL SAY TO YOU BE CAREFUL WHEN YOU CHOSE MEMBERS FOR THE NEXT PARTY. I KNOW THAT YOU REMEMBER THE LAST ELECTION WHEN WE HAD SO MANY DISGUISE UDP CANJDATES AS INDEPENDENTS
Way to go Chuckie……..lets turn this thing upside down, shake it up and reform or reshape it as you said in your statement.
Now is the time !
This is what I call courage. Even though The Chuckster knows that he will now be attacked by both the UDP and PPM machinery he is still prepared to call it as he sees it come what may. Thank you Sir !
Well said Mr. Clifford. It takes a bold man to go up against the establishment and challenge them. You have my support and my entire family as well.
I think a better system would have been one where the country voted for the Premier, who was then free to appoint cabinet ministers and each district elect one representative who was the check and balance against the cabinet. It would have also been cheaper. However, the UK says our system has to be modeled after the Westminister system, so there goes that. The problem with independents is that if they were truly independent, they would always be looking out for their own interest and there would always be disagreements when they could not get their way. Ever heard the saying, “No man is an island?” Without consensus and cooperation, independents will get no where and will not accomplish anything. Even the independents of the past teamed up, so call it independents, call it a team, or call it a group, it is still a party. A party allows for a more focused and coordinated result; one where everyone knows what that party stands for and advocates. Imagine a group of truly independents where one districts elects them to build roads, another district elects it representatives to build flood walls and another elects theirs to clear farm land? What happens to the national agenda? What happens when there isn’t enough money to build the roads, build the flood walls and clear the farm land? What happens when the Turtle Farm, Pedro Castle, the Botanic Park, Cayman Airways, Social Services all scream for money? It’s time to stop the semantics, admit that party politics is the norm and play like a true team player.
I hope the third option is a third party; and I hope someone launches it before Chuckie does, because sorry to say, but to me, Chuckie is of questionable character! What I want to see is a new party with new faces, that has a solid platform, a political doctrine!
To Chuckie I would like to say Didyou know Russian Roulette is a dangerous Game. My family would consider voting for you but you will have to come down off the fence.
PPM took bread from my table for 7 years. If they can make up for that then they will get the 27 votes I control in my family.
So you control 27 votes…..really?
Am with the Chuckster!
Mr Clifford, please enjoy your retirement and your pension from your brief political stint.
As`far as Mr Alden as the new leader of the PPM, his arrogant ways will do the needful with no further help.