Cayman News

Young Brackers raise funds for recording studio

(CNS): A new group on Cayman Brac has formed to encourage young musicians on the island, with the ultimate goal of building a recording studio, while keeping kids on the Brac entertained and drug free. Changing Lives And Setting Standards (C.L.A.S.S.) is an entertainment and recording group aimed primarily for the youth of Cayman Brac, and members say that hosting different themed parties has become their forte, as well as providing entertainment for third party events, such as providing the music for the teen section in the annual Braccanal Parade in May.

Entertainment for young people, they say, is hard to find on a small island but instead of complaining that there is not enough to do, they have decided to do something aboutit.

As an entertainment group C.L.A.S.S. hosts parties for youth in a safe, drug and alcohol free environment and it promotes cleaner, safer parties. Trying to keep kids away from the traditional “party and drinking” scene that has become so popular over the years, the group says it ensures the most fun yet safe activities for the youth of Cayman Brac.

C.L.A.S.S. has already held a variety of events, such as a Glow Party, a Valentine's Day Dance, a St. Patrick's Day Party as well as the After Braccanal Party for the youth, and says the feedback from the young people on the island has been very positive.

C.L.A.S.S. also encourages more local singers and entertainers to record and promote their own work, and a couple of artists are already on board.

As a recording group, C.L.A.S.S. hopes to release local music during the summer to help promote the talent on Cayman Brac. A spokesperson for the group said that many young people are nervous about performing in front of crowds and C.L.A.S.S. provides these young artists with an opportunity to present their art to the public in a professional and popular way.

“The internet is a catalyst for many musicians nowadays, with many popular artists including A$AP Rocky, Drake, Meek Mill and others getting their start from posting their music online. Using these same methods C.L.A.S.S. aims to get Brac artists' voices heard all around the globe,” he said. “Using state-of-the art recording equipment as well as social media, artists' music could be recorded and heard all across the world in the space of one day.”

“C.L.A.S.S. aims to develop the first recording studio run by the youth for the youth and with so many local supporters that aim does not appear to be too far out of sight,” the group’s spokesperson said.  “With many fundraisers during the summer planned, keep an eye out for C.L.A.S.S. posters as well as social media updates. C.L.A.S.S will be a name synonymous with the youth of Cayman Brac as we aim to promote and develop a classy next generation.”

The group consists of MalcolmH (Malcolm Hurlston), DJ DaCon (David Conolly), TannaB (Tanner Scott) and  R Bryan (Robert Bryan) with other occasional guests that contribute to the group, namely Tafari and Tushaun Young, K-Frass and Akito Lewis. Each member has a different role that contributes to the smooth running of the group, with DJ DaCon being the primary DJ for parties and events, while MalcolmH is the organizer and promoter for the group as well as a backup DJ and artist. TannaB is the social networking ambassador, using his many connections to spread the word about events and recording sessions with the public, while R Bryan is an artist and liaison for C.L.A.S.S.' promotion in Grand Cayman.

For more info and updates on events visit the C.L.A.S.S. Facebook page.

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PMFL too tough, says OAG

(CNS): While the auditor general has pointed to a number of reasons preventing government from meeting its requirement to report properly on public finances, Alastair Swarbrick said the main problem is the Public Management and Finance Law. Adding his voice to long-time calls for a complete review of what he believes is a very complex piece of legislation, the country’s public auditor said government was never going to meet the law’s demands and, as a result, both legislators and the public would remain in the dark about what government has done with tax payers' money. In a report entitled "Restoring Financial Accountability: A time for change?", he answered his own question with an emphatic 'yes'.

“Whilst poor implementation, leadership and management have been contributors to the absence of accountability over the last nine years, it is my view that the PMFL is too complex for the Cayman Islands government to deliver effective accountability and transparency for the use of resources,” Swarbrick wrote in the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) report, adding his opinion that, nine years after its implementation, the government would never meet the requirements of the PMFL .

Swarbrick pointed to the many damning failures in the administrative arm of government and the end result — a resounding failure of officials to explain how they have spent the people’s money and whether the spending has helped to meet the policy objectives of the successive governments since the law was passed in 2004.

With little or no attempt to report on outcomes (the information which would demonstrate whether or not government initiatives have been a success) and a sizeable increase in staff costs with no tangible benefits, the public purse is at serious risk, Swarbrick said.

Aside from the risk of fraud, abuse and mismanagement of resources, and no way to see if money has been spent wisely, Swarbrick pointed out that for almost a decade, the public has not been given any credible, understandable and timely reports that explain where their money has gone.

Regarding the main function of a financial reporting framework where the people are concerned, he noted, “The framework should enable the Legislature and other stakeholders to effectively scrutinize the plans of government and subsequently hold them accountable for the resources authorised and used to deliver those plans.”

Among the many problems caused by the failure of government to report on spending and the complexity of the current law, the separation between executive and entity has not only led to the need for two sets of accounts but it has blurred the boundaries between what the Cabinet spends and what the administrative arm spends.

“Whilst chief officers are clearly accountable for ensuring adequate controls are in place over entity expenses, in practice executive expenses are not always subject to the same controls,” he said. However, the most pressing problem is that executive transactions are only reported via the Entire Public sector (ESP) financial statements and, as no ESP report has been published since the financial year 2003-04, government has not provided any audited information to the LA or the public on spending by Cabinet for more than eight years.

As the goal is for the legislature and the people to hold government accountable for the money it spends, Swarbrick has recommended a major overhaul to simplify the way government reports, including consolidating the ministries and portfolios into one set of accounts.

Although some of his recommendations have been well received by the deputy governor, who has now taken leadership on government financially accountability, he has rejected some of Swarbrick’s proposals on the grounds that they would be a step away from the goal of complete transparency.

However, Swarbrick argued that this was not the case and, given that government officials have completely failed to meet the requirements of the current system, right now there is no accountability at all. Swarbrick is hoping to persuade the head of the civil service that his ideas will help him and the public sector achieve significant transparency for the first time in years, even if it is in a more consolidated format.

Swarbrick said that producing one good set of consolidated core government accounts that are “credible, timely and understandable” would be a massive improvement on the current situation. “Right now there is no transparency at all,” he said last week at a press briefing about the report.

See full report here.

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MoT seals consultant contract

(CNS): PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC) has won the bid to provide government with financial consultant services for procurement of a cruise berthing facility, specifically through a private public partnership arrangement, including the business case and financial tender documents. The tendering process began on 3 May under the former tourism minister, Cline Glidden, after three and a half years of bungling by his predecessor, McKeeva Bush, had left the country no nearer to acquiring a cruise port. The construction contract is expected to be awarded for the proposed cruise berthing project in 2014. Deadlines for each of these steps will be firmed up in the coming weeks, according to Chief Officer Stran Bodden (pictured signing the document).

The previous PPM government had begun negotiations with Atlantic Star to build a cruise ship dock and establish new cargo facilities close to the existing cargo centre. However. these negotiations stopped when the UDP won the May 2009 general elections and the new government’s plans for a cruise dock was put to tender.

DECCO, the Dart Group’s construction company, came out top in the first bid. However, the islands’ largest investor pulled out of negotiations with government when the parties reached stalemate over the period of time Dart wanted to lease the upland development area in order to recoup its investment.

GLF Construction was the next bidder on the shortlist, so when the DECCO talks collapsed, Cline Glidden, who was the government’s lead negotiator at the time, moved into talks with the Italian-based firm and their local partners, Royal Construction. Just weeks before the company was ready to mobilize, then premier Bush, going over the heads of the port board and his own back-bencher, announced his decision to terminate those talks as he did not believe GLF had the cash, and moved into negotiations with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).

The Beijing-based firm, however, was not next on the list as it had never taken part in the original bid and the plans included considerable upland development that did not form part of the original tender.

Under significant pressure from the UK, amid concerns that the procurement process had fallen far short of international best practices, in November 2012 Bush finally dropped his insistence that the port should be built by CHEC. After he was ousted from power in December 2012, Glidden took over his tourism portfolio and in May, just weeks before the election, issued a request for proposal (RFP) for financial consultancy services for the project.

With a new Progressive Tourism Minister, Moses Kirkconnell, following a change of government, the ministry then evaluated the bids that were submitted on 24 May. The minister announced that he was picking up the formal process that began under the minority short term PNA administration and that the business model, when complete, would form the basis for the project.

Deputy Premier Kirkconnell has said that the cruise facility in George Town would be piers only with no upland development, as the government wanted to rebuild George Town. He has also said that government must set out its needs for this project and not have the developer tell government what it would do.

Following the signing of the contract on Tuesday morning, 1 July, Kirkconnell said it showed government was taking another step in international best procurement practices. “It reflects government’s commitment to be open and transparent in all processes in developing the cruise berthing facility,” he said.

PWC, named the successful bidder last month, will commence work early in July. On Tuesday, Ministry Chief Officer Stran Bodden, on behalf of CIG, and PWC representative David Walker signed the contract at Government Administration Building to formalise the consultancy.

“PWC is tasked with producing an outline business case, the full businesscase and tender documents for the proposed cruise berthing project,” Bodden said.

Following the issuance of tender documents, and a suitable tender period that will include a timeframe for negotiation, the construction contract is expected to be awarded for the proposed cruise berthing project in 2014, he noted. Deadlines for each of these steps will be firmed up in the coming weeks, he said. 

CG reveals port fiasco (CNS, 24 April 2013)

Bush rejects port developers (CNS, 20 April 2011

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