Gov’t working hard says Mac
(CNS): The premier told the Cayman people in a broadcast address on Thursday evening that he and his government were hard at work on their behalf. McKeeva Bush said that as a result of that hard work and despite the economic decline in the last two years, the outlook for 2011 was more optimistic. The modest recovery, he added, was supported by construction projects due to start later this year. However the premier warned against negative publicity and “negative demonstrations” as he took aim at the planned march on Tuesday. “These islands are being watched every day by the international world and the PPM has now encouraged what they term civil disobedience,” he said.
Bush accused the opposition of being out of touch with reality and having nothing to offer. “When people are out to spread a message of fear, to create a climate of doubt and suspicion, you wouldn’t expect them to have anything much to show beyond wild rhetoric,” the premier said in his TV and radio message.
He said the “noise” being made by the opposition was merely about shouting down the good his government was trying to do — “the jobs we are trying to create, the progress we are trying to generate for the people of these islands.”
He denied that government had anything to do with the debate over the East End port facility. “This is a proposal which the proposed developer has had the good sense to open up to public scrutiny; it is a proposal which would be subject to the full rigours of scrutiny with respect to the impacts it would have, the resources it would require, and the benefits it might bring,” Bush said that the port was not being built by government, the property in question was not owned by the government and it had not been approved by government.
He said, “The Dart proposal is good, the oil refinery is good, the projects that the China Harbour Company offers are good. They will create opportunity and a better economy for all.”
As he took aim at the opposition, he said that beating up on the government was one of the world’s oldest sports and some of our "so-called leaders" were "in the Olympic class" but that there was no gold medal in the sport.
The premier said government continues to work night and day to make things better for Cayman, for all thepeople of the Cayman Islands. “The things we do, and some things we have to undo, are based on this, and grow out of this objective. We work for you!” he exclaimed. “We are not deaf tocriticism, nor do we stop our ears when constructive suggestions are brought forward. We are working for you, for all of us, and for all our children, and we implore you to judge our efforts objectively,” Bush pleaded in the address.
See full statement below.
Category: Politics
Just face facts. Your done.
Do I detect a 'bunker mentality' developing here?
Oh my Mr. Premeire. Where do I begin? There is so much BS in your speech that it is hard to decide what to take the shovel to first.
Let us start at the beginning:
"These islands are being watched every day by the international world and the PPM has now encouraged what they term civil disobedience,”
(You seem to have no problem with your civil XXXX being scrutinised by the world. And to cap it all off your grammar is atrocious. Your manner of speech is somewhat amusing in it colloquial simplicity. Which would be ok coming from a fish-monger or banana picker, but it is not befitting a national leader. Case in point – and this is mild in comparison to some of the things you have said – it should have been: "…the PPM have now encouraged what they term civil disobedience”. The "have" and the "they" must agree to be grammatically correct. It is "they have" not "they has". But I doubt you would discern the difference.
"…the international world"
(??? I won't even bother to comment about this one.)
"Bush accused the opposition of being out of touch with reality and having nothing to offer. "
(Are you serious, Mac? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! Any leader of a cash-strapped country who wastes precious government funds by continually spreeing off on pointless junkets that include first-class seats, five-star accommodations, gourmet fare, and limousines – while "offering" cutting back on civil servants' pay and slashing vital government budgets – has no place accusing anyone else of being "out of touch with reality“.
"When people are out to spread a message of fear, to create a climate of doubt and suspicion, you wouldn’t expect them to have anything much to show beyond wild rhetoric."
(On this you are somewhat qualified to offer an opinion. You are the gold medal winning master of fear-mongering, smoke-and-mirrors and spouting hot air.)
“This is a proposal which the proposed developer has had the good sense to open up to public scrutiny."
( Mac, you are showing your true colours by typifying a matter being held up to public scrutiny as an exceptional circumstance worthy of utmost praise.Such a project should be subject to public scrutiny in any case and as matter of customary procedure.)
“The Dart proposal is good, the oil refinery is good, the projects that the China Harbour Company offers are good. They will create opportunity and a better economy for all.”
(And on the Day of Doom, the almighty Mac looked at all he had created and said, "It is good!" Ok, Mac, again you show your true colours by using as your yardstick strictly economic measures. By such a measure developing a whorehouse industry would be deemed "good" as such a move would offer employment and business opportunity – not to mention entertainment. You have little concern about the environment or the social fabric of this territory. As long as it will bring in dollars, it is good. The Medellin Cartel thought so too.)
"We are not deaf to criticism, nor do we stop our ears when constructive suggestions are brought forward."
(Agreed. You and your UDP minions hear but you simply ignore the message, or you whine and accuse the speaker of trying to blow down your house of cards. Or you bully them and call them names. Between your bellicose bullying and your grammar, you belong in fifth grade, not Parliament.)
"We are working for you, for all of us, and for all our children, and we implore you to judge our efforts objectively."
(Hey, Mac, I think this is one of the motives for the demonstration you so vehemently oppose. The people have judged your leadership objectively and found that much is sorely lacking. Hello? Anybody home? Can you hear us? Hmmm…? Guess not.)
OK. Now that we have shovelled some of this out the door, the room is beginning to smell better. But it will not be long before our Leader begins to stink it up again.
I'm afraid that it's a bit of wasted breath regarding his grammar. The man only has a 7th grade education. He brags that he left school at 13. I don't believe he learned much about grammar up until then anyway.
If he says 13 it was probably 10.
I think as much as many of us don't like the current UPD government with MAC at the helm it is important to Note…..we don't really like you either PPM. You are about the same animal with differnt color fur. You know they are looking at these posts thinking they got it made. The people are against poor government and that includes you too PPM. Most of us feel our choices are bleak with this two party system. It's not about which party is better but which party will cause the least damage. Both parties have the almost equal potential. The police need to be fixed and the Governor it just starting to realize what he's really dealing with but he can't really help us before another Governor comes along. PPM, sit up straight in your chairs, you may get in but it's not becuase we think you are great. We'll be standing out in front of your bulding too.
We have every right as a democratic country to protest. It is not fair to make this that we are trying to inhibit good things happening in the economy.
This, for me at least, is about the environment and looking at the long term effects on the islands. We are a small country and we need to protect our natural resources.
Is it worth it to have jobs if we have no clean air, no fresh water to drink?
We are allowed to protest, I hope that all procedures for demonstrating have been followed. I assume they have, they we shall protest, as is our right by the constitution.
I think Shrek puts it best:
http://www.moviesoundclips.net/movies1/shrek2/working.wav
Sooooo funny and so appropriate, thanks for your post 🙂
All facts to the contrary.
I believe there's a difference between "working hard" and "hardly working" ….Just saying…
'……….We work for you!” he exclaimed.'
Politicians hate protests. It shows their house is not in order and the people are not happy. Macs plea for no protest is like a failing marriage that one tries to hide from friends and neighbors by pulling the curtains back. It shows something is wrong. Airing dirty laundry. The hate it and that is good. Demonstrating IS THE ONLY thing that gets results. You have to embarrass people back in to doing their jobs and representing the people. We need to crank up the heat and keep it on. YOU GUYS WORK FOR US. STOP MAKING DEALS WITH CORRUPT CHINESE COMPANIES and the general bad judgment you have subjected us too for these past years both UDP and PPM.
Government and our Premier are working so hard for these islands and some Caymanians are so spiteful that they are planning marches to disrupt this islands and run away investors. They are even posting things on international websites I am made to understand. These very disgusting people have even gone to the UK to stir up trouble so that the UK can come here to take over but I know that the Premier won't let this happen.
When are gas prices going to go down? They have been dropping steadily for the past 7 – 8 weeks. The price dropped by around 18cents per barrel today. When are we going to get some relief from the criminal oppression we are subjected to? Pure greed is killing most of us in Cayman while the elite few line their pockets more and more. Do your own people, some of whom put you in you in your current position, a huge favour and give some relief at the gas pumps, which will trickle down to the rest of the economy. Stop punishing us for having minds of our own. Please remember UDP that what goes around comes around – threefold or more. Do the right thing for your people
The world is watching and no one is doing more damage to the reputation of these islands than the Premier. We are not stupid. We see through your useless schemes. Why is this Govt. hell bent on doing whatever they can to destroy the environment. We know development is needed but it needs to be done with ethical partners, who are not just in it to make money, but really want to do things the right way for the benefit of the country as well as themselves. We are sick of being bullied and treated like idiots. The world is watching the leadership of these islands and waitng along with the people of Cayman for someone in authority to get some courage, step up and start investigating all these shady deals. Starting with the Chinese port deal. Find out why the last party was dropped and these unscruplous people adopted. We do not want corruption. We want honestly and integrity. Time for a new Govt.
Working hard on the dance floor … bam bow, bam bow …
at Elements again????????????
Mr. Bush,
Can you guarantee that we will not see an influx of forgien workers to the projects you have listed as good projects?
Can you guarantee us that the materials used on these projects will be procured through local sources?
Can you guarantee us that lower and middle management jobs will be filled by Caymanians? and those in mid/lower management will be in training to move up at an accelerated rate.
Can you guarantee us that those that come to fill positions that Caymanians cannot will not be allowed to stay beyond the duration of the project? And Caymanianswill be placed in training to shadow the imported experts during their tenure.
Can you guarantee us that no members of your government will personally profit a single penny from any of these projects?
Can you guarantee us that we will see an actual measurable cost of living decrease when these projects commence or become working entities?
Can you guarentee that these projects and their financial benefits will not simply lead to bigger government, that costs more money eating up the "benefit" to Cayman?
I personally do not believe all of these projects are bad, in fact exactly the opposite in some cases. I do believe however if a protectionist stance is not taken, all of the measureable benefit will be had by those who care little for Cayman and only see $$$$$ when they hit our shores. Guarantee me that you are protecting Caymanians and you will not flood our shores bulk shipments of any nationality again and you will have an open ear from me. If you cannot, I will be at the front of the mass of Caymanians and those who love this country that will protest the projects you propose.
Regards,
Kent McTaggart
Only if the workers themselves can guarantee that they will first
1. Show up. On time. Every work day.
2. Do the quantity and Quality of work expected of the pay.
3. Be trainable.
Only after this has proved true will your need to employ Caymanians be guaranteed.
Otherwise you are asking for handouts to those who belive they are intitled to it instead of working for it.
And you will make getting the projects done much harder.
In reply to your points:
1) As would be expected by anyone if there is not an acceptable reason.
2) As long as the pay is in line with the cost of living, and accordance to the standard of living that we as Cayman national have. We should not be paid in relation to what a job could be done by a import that at home makes $50 per week and is willing to live 4 persons in a bedroom.
3) Almost everyone is trainable if the enviroment is correct, and if for some reason they prove to be untrainable, then steps should be take to find a niche that may match their abilities.
And to this statement "Only after this has proved true will your need to employ Caymanians be guaranteed" I reply with this.
Mr/Mrs Anonymous,
This is Cayman, and if Caymanians can not or will not be employed then as far as I am concerned we do not need the development, as who will the development profit? If the Caymanians will not be a part of the revenue stream, and they will be starving. So if they will be starving then there is no need for the development.
"Otherwiseyou are asking for handouts to those who belive they are intitled to it instead of working for it."
I respond to the above with this. Caymanians are entitled to it the work, it is a gift to those who are not Caymanians that are allowed to come here and benefit. What we can not do is enable Caymanians by allowing their entitlement to the works to grow the bad habits that overshadow good that has and will come from empowering them, as I am a true believer that if you enable rather than empower you take the soul out of the man and leave a void that grow a incurable cancer.
"And you will make getting the projects done much harder."
I once again respond with the fact that if it doesn't benefit the Caymanian people it simply shouldn't be done at all!
I also want to state that I am not defining "Caymanian" as only black,carmel or white colored persons that have historical "Caymanian" names like Ebanks, Bodden, Thompson, McTaggart… but all of those who have legal right to call Cayman their home. I do not want to change the past, but I do want a better future, and as a Caymanian, I am a protectionist! If it doesn't benefit Cayman as a whole then it should not happen!
I hope this helps you understand where I stand.
Yeah right the world is worried about people exercising their democratic right of protest. What they are watching Mr. Premier is:
– you dumping reliable reporting standards for the accounting of government ministries.
– your clandestine negotiations with companies known to use bribery to get contracts.
– your continual circumvention of due process for government contracts and decisions.
– your fear of addressing the opposition or your public in and open forum.
Any uncertainty regarding Cayman's future, and I am sure there is some, is due to you running the country like you ran First Cayman Bank. You and no one else is to blame. We are not as dumb as you think and this time we won't forget.
@ post 22:30 are you just a plain Blind????????????????? Have you forgotten that it was the PPM that wasted this Islands 86 millions + $ on the mess that UDP has been left to clean UP, Omg goodness please you all have to stop and look at all the facts. This country would be in this mess if it wasn't for your great leaders the PPM group.
PS. I am not PPM or UDP I am a God fearing person, But facts has shown me that we wouldn't be in this mess, if PPM hadn't spent all the country's money on, "I still have to see what".
Mr. Bush,
I think you need to stop pointing fingers, and calling names and start making things happen, I/ we think you can, the George Town dock wouldn't have be there would not have been if it wasn't for the forsite of of the great Mr. Berkley Bush, safehaven wouldn't be there if Mr. Benson Ebanks wasn't working hard for the people of these Islands.
People of the Cayman Islands there is nothing wrong with change stop being afraid of it. You just don't like it cause it's not something you are use to.
People we are 50 years behind time according to the rest of the world and if we don't make some changes the rest of this world we leave us @ a stand still. And then what are we going to do! or maybe we should just going back to twisting rope and fishing……….Eh?
Mr. Bush
We know you want the best for these Islands and I feel like you can fix the mess, But you have to stop the blaming thing! Just shut your mouth and do what you need to do, Thanks for the great job that I think that you've been doing for us keep up the good work, God Bless you.
Tell us all again where the $185 million is that McKeever just borrowed? Is that more or less than the $86 million that the PPM put into roads/education/GOAB/ all the other good stuff.
How blind are you?
stop the madness
Stop the communism
Change this government!
I am the poster you are replying to. Are you seriously saying the the only way out was avoiding established democratic due process and removing the power of FOI by taking away reliable "I" such as world accepted accounting practices for government reporting.
I'm sorry to say but you are the blind one and the reason the Premier thinks he can get away with this kind of self interested use of public money.
I truly hope that you are not ignorant but have decided to swallow this as you are a recipient of the Nation Building slush fund.
Well, if the individual in question is receiving anything from the "Nation Building" slush fund, as you put it, it's only fair as they apparently missed out on the literacy fund.
I'm guessing that the partial lobotomy didn't come cheap either and I applaud Mr Bush for helping them out with that medical expense. It was a decent thing to do and he deserves their vote completely 😉
'These islands are being watched everyday by the international world' How can anyone take this man seriously? If the Premier was genuinely concerned about the international world's perception of Cayman why didn't he consider the potential damage he can cause to the financial services industry when he takes it upon himself to announce in the budget speech that he is going to implement a new fee on certain hedge funds? If the Premier is genuinely concerned about Cayman why didn't he answer Alden's questionsabout the Cohen deal? a little bit of transparency goes a long way in clearing up any suspicion of corruption but sadly we currently have a government that fights transparency what does that tell you about the Premier? The upcoming protests are the only way to get across to the Premier and his psychophants that have benefitted materially from his time in office that the way he conducts our country's business will no longer be tolerated.
Taking care of old and new dump will create lots of jobs. The island stinks big deal. The stench permeates well into SMB area. I take it as a personla insult- I am forced to breath it. The sewage disposal is a big problem. NOBODY monitoring and enforcing the codes. I will not buy anyhting here because this island is on the brink of ecological catastrophy. Just wait for the next big hurricane. Nothing is being done to create safe crossing of WestBay road. Crime is uncontrollable. Civil "employees" are getting paid 120,000 per year tor staying home.Public accounts are unaudible? What kind of country is that? A joke?
This island don't belong to MB or even Caymanians. We are all visitors on this planet. Leave it to the future generations in a pristine state.While you still can.
Peaceful Protest = Civil Disobedience? What is this man talking about? Obviously, democracy is word not in his vocabulary. What the world will see on Tuesday, Mr. Premier, is that a great number of the people of the Cayman Islands have had enough of your despotism.
Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government. I think MB is confused about the proposed action and using wrong words.
I think that maybe McBush should remember…"when you point a finger at someone else, there are three more pointing back at you."
Yeah Mac Mac working hard all right….but it's clearly for short term gain (if any gain) for him and his, resulting in permanent long term pain for the rest of us.
That statment he read sounded like he was describing himself.
The good Lord helps those who help themselves.
Mac is only helping himself!
Here you go – my 25 cents…
YES, Cayman needs development. Yes we need to work together.
NO we don't need a leader telling us to stop marching against fundamentaly damaging projects whilst encouraging us to get out and, hypocritcally, march ourselves.
MAC…
Dart proposal – a giant YES. Gotta express some concerns – road moving is a dodgy one – but at the end of the day, in this ONE SINGULAR INSTANCE – I feel it is right. It will let Dart recoup its investment by making a minor road change so they can develop a potentially radical change in the tourism product – not just another 4-walls hotel on the beach.
East End QUARRY – No. The concept is great, the environmental repercussions are far reaching and could send us back to the dark ages. Looking for another Nauru (Google it, my friend) then here you are. We are messing with nature – and she (Mudda Nature) ain't got a chance when you start going to these extemes. Stop even thinking about it…
In the same "NO" BOAT – anything major in the sound. Keep the North Sound clean – we need to ensure there are breeding grounds for our species, and being nothing but a pinacle in the ocean, any flats need to be protected. In Little Cayman too…
Now onto the dock. We need something. I was TOTALLY against the pier system until recently when I began to see my fellow Caymanians suffering from the cruise pull-back. We need something. Personally, I am at a loss as to why the Dart proposal, and then the next local project was quashed. DO NOT LET A FOREIGN NAION RUN YOUR MAJOR IMPORT/EXPORT INFRUSTRUCTURE. The Chinese deal is the ultimate Trojan Horse (back to google, or even wikipedia, here my friend…) The US made a major statement when they denied the Chinese the rights to run their ports. So now the Chinese are looking to circle the fort and do it from without.
I have nothing against the Chinese. Indeed, I am a firm believer we should be teaching our kid Mandarin NOW because by the time they come of age, they will be the minority if they don't have it.
The US is on the decline. But for our future, we need to be looking to those within, looking to invest for all.
As for the dump, educate the BT-ners and tell them they aren't getting a dump, they are getting a state-of-the-art waste processing facility. Sure, it's garbage, but the recycelable is recycled, the compostable will be composted, and the money-generating exports, will be exported. At the end of the day, there will be little left to dump, if done properly… And if there is one thing Dart has shown us so far, they are definitely true to their word in creating the right final image…
Mr. Premier; how do you explain saying that a project "is good for Cayman"? Based on what? Where is the scientific socio-economic data? The EIA's are not even complete yet!
Look at what the DoE just uncovered about the EE Seaport EIA….very much incomplete (which most of us deduced very quickly upon reading it). But you proclaim "it is good for Cayman" to a different proposal almost every other day. And sign MOU's like they're going out of style.
Who in their right mind behaves like this?
Sorry Mr. Premier, but you have made it abundantly clear that you want to Dictate and Bully your way through. Time for the people to make a stand!
SMH
"the good his government was trying to do. “The jobs we are trying to create, the progress we are trying to generate for the people of these Islands.” Sorry Mac, you are not being paid to try. You, and the rest of the UDP for that matter, are being paid to run our country. We expect nothing less from you, and "trying" is most certainly less.
I don't think he's "trying" to do anything for us, but the way he runs the country and treats his people is very "trying" indeed.
Civil disobedience? PPM?
Its not about politics Mac, its about CAYMAN – which is more important to you?
I, for one, am not associated with the UDP. I agree that there are too many daggers thrown at the Premier for everything he does. It's just that some of the proposals made"for the good of the people" just aren't the right thing to do. Look at the enormous costs of these projects! Aren't we having a little problem with our "budget"? When we get a big surplus of money we can look for positive projects…. and not something that harms the environment or everyone's health. I ask everyone to forget what UDP or PPM wants you to think. Use your head and make the right decisions.
I agree there are a lot of daggers being directed at the Premier but it is his own fault for not feeling it is necessary to address the issues being voiced by his people! We are left to think there is only one reason he won't dispell his people's legitimate suspsicions over government operations and negotiations…he can't as the truth would only confirm them.
Sounds like the premier is talking about himself….as he has, and continues to, cause more fear and confusion than anyone else.
Mr. Premier, it is YOUR attitude and behavior that is causing concern and resulting with us the people (Internationally and locally) to take a stand!
You obviously cannot or will not act appropriately….and we're tired of it! You should do the honourable thing and step down!
It is interesting that all the naysayers to what government is doing, are still unable to offer good solutions to better the country's economy. Little do you see better alternatives from critics expressed on CNS.
This is a very lame comment.
Just because the 'naysayers' are unable to offer good solutions does NOT make the ones on the table good ones!!
Destruction of what we have is NOT a good solution. Even if it were to bring in some little ting, you yaysayers are not looking at the bigger picture