Bodden Town MLAs open Campaign 2009

(CNS): Despite insisting that the meeting was merely a time to report back to their constituents, all three of Bodden Town’s MLAs did their very best to get the election campaign going last night (Tuesday 3 March) when they convened their second local political gathering in the district. Reminding constituents what they had done since getting elected, Osbourne Bodden said that the three of them had achieved 90% of the goals that they had set out in the Bodden Town team’s manifesto in 2005.

“I think that is a really good report card,” Bodden stated after telling the audience that he was not campaigning. He also went on to berate the previous administration over the allocation of status grants, and asked the audience if they were going to buy the idea of “change” that other would-be representatives were selling.

“You elected us to change from inaction in Bodden Town to action and we changed that, so what would you be changing now — back to no action?” he asked. The MLA listed a number of projects and what he described as achievements since he and his ministerial colleagues were elected, and reminded everyone that the PPM was all about love of country. He said it was an organised party, formed properly with more than 1100 members, and he was proud to be a member.

Minister for Health and Human Services and the First Elected Member for the district, Anthony Eden, opened the night’s speeches in the car park of the Bodden Town Library on an evening where temperatures dropped to 66 degrees Fahrenheit. Eden reminded constituents about projects he had initiated in the district and also lauded a number of national projects undertaken by the PPM government, including the construction of schools and the new Government Administration Building, which was not only supplying jobs for local people, but when completed would save the government $5 million in rent per year. He said it was a state-of-the art building that would offer Cayman’s first on-site workplace day care centre which received wide applause.

He made the point that he believed government had spent wisely and could easily account for the funds as the money was invested in infrastructure and tangible assets. Eden also continued the nights theme of saying the meeting was not about campaigning but proceeded to campaign. He told the small gathering that the PPM was a government that was honest and hard working and its main goal was to help people. “This government has been about helping people,” he said. “We look forward to the next four years serving the people of Bodden Town.”  He asked the people to compare the current situation in their district today with how it was four years ago and consider that when they cast their vote on 20 May.

Charles Clifford Minister for Tourism closed the evening’s proceedings with a run down of his work in tourism and emphasized the Go East Initiative. He said that as a result of that initiative he had succeeded in bringing more cruise passengers to the Eastern Districts and had created opportunities for Caymanians to benefit from the tourism industry.

“People criticised the idea that cruise passengers would ever come to the Botanic Park as it was too far from George Town, but we proved them wrong and have dramatically increased visitor numbers there and to many of the other Eastern District attractions,” he said.

He also reminded people that if they had an idea for a business that fitted with the Go East campaign they could get assistance from the Development Bank to get started. He said that he had been criticised for taking so long to table the new National Tourism Management Plan but he said he was not concerned as he had always intended to create a plan that was about the people of Cayman, one that would spread the profitable element of tourism throughout the island and not just concentrate the benefits in the Seven Mile Beach area.

Clifford also reminded the people at the meeting that in the election campaign of 2005 he had stood on the hustings and told people the PPM government would create an effective coast guard for Cayman that would help protect the islands’ borders from illegal weapons and drugs. He said that campaign promise had been realised with the plans for a new marine unit building in Spotts and the arrival of four new sea vessels for the RCIPS .

Clifford, like his two colleagues, took the opportunity to make the most of the opportunity to convince the constituents that he had been a worthy representative and, regardless of how many times the three MLAs said they were not campaigning, it was clear and evident that the PPM campaign is now underway.