Election 2009
Final effort to query Constitution
(CNS): Following the rejection of the Equality Cayman’s petition asking the government for a choice in the referendum, the group has now shifted gears and in the final run-up to Election Day on 20 May, it is now focusing on the ‘yes’ or ‘no’ choice on the Referendum on the Draft Constitution. The grassroots organization opposes the proposed Constitution because it says the Bill of Rights included does not protect the people from discrimination. Members of the group will be at various locations around the island over the next few days and will take part in a special edition of “Talk Today” on Radio Cayman the day before elections.
Equality Cayman (EQCI) volunteers will be at Hurley’s Supermarket on Saturday, 16 May, from 8am to 1pm, where they will be encouraging the public to submit questions for the talk show next Tuesday, 19 May. The group will also be on hand at Kirk’s supermarket on Tuesday, from 5pm until 8pm, to encourage voters to voice their views by voting on the referendum when casting their votes for the general election.
In a release, the group says that while its initial objective was to draw attention to the lack of human rights protections included in the new constitution’s Bill of Rights and to ask the government to include the choice for more widespread protection against discrimination in the current draft, it has now taken on the primary focus of helping voters understand the pros and cons of voting yes or no on the referendum ballot on 20 May.
Equality Cayman collected approximately 700 signatures over the course of the three and a half weeks, which it presented to the leader of government business prior to the closing of the Legislative Assembly on 24 March. As they gathered signatures, the group says their volunteers were overwhelmed by the number of petitioners who also voiced concern over their lack of understanding of the document and apprehension over other sections beyond section 16 on non-discrimination.
“The outpouring of support and requests for assistance and information received by the group made it clear that it was necessary to define long term goals to ensure that we could achieve the desire on the part of many Caymanians and residents of our country to ensure that we have a society built on the ideals of fairness and equality,” explains EQCI spokesperson Katrina Jurn.
Those goals will be announced following the referendum given that the outcome of the votes cast is necessary to determine that the organization’s goals resonate with the people’s needs.
Until then, Equality Cayman urges the people of the Cayman Islands to visit their table at Hurley’s Supermarket on Saturday, 16 May, between 8am and 1pm, send their questions to equalitycayman@gmail.com, log on to www.equalitycayman.ky, and tune into Radio Cayman on Tuesday, 19 May, starting at noon to listen to the “Talk Today” discussion on the new draft constitution.
Legal action threatened between candidates
(CNS): A political sideshow over who said what on the Rooster call-in show Crosstalk concerning the academic qualifications of UDP George Town Candidate Ellio Solomon has taken a new turn, with Bodden Town independent candidate Sandra Catron issuing a cease and desist letter via email to UDP members Mark Scotland and Dwayne Seymour, and also to UDP leader McKeeva Bush, notifying them that if necessary she was prepared to take legal action.
This letter followed comments by Seymour on air that Catron had threatened to kill a woman and had stalked her former boss’s children.
While the UDP has said the party does not wish to comment at this time. Catron has issued a 1,000-word press release explaining her actions, which she also read out on Radio Cayman’s mid-morning talk show on 12 May.
Catron’s objections refer to a call into the show by Bodden Town candidate Dwayne Seymour, who said: “Sandra is a very shady person and people in the Cayman Islands need to know that she is a very shady person and it would be a shame for someone like Sandra to get in the House knowing that she has threatened to kill people, she has threatened to kill a woman already from Bodden Town and she has stalked her former boss’ children at their school, and she has also hacked into government websites.”
Catron’s release says, “Mr Mark Scotland, who was also in the studio, made background remarks to state that he had proof of this. I consider these comments to be highly offensive and also legally slanderous. As a result, I immediately contacted the owner of Rooster 101 as well as the host of the program to make my concerns known. Quite interestingly, CrossTalk host Austin Harris stated earlier in the program that ‘we do not allow slanderous statements on this show that are unproven’. Clearly this is a double standard that does not apply to all participants. He allowed no less than 3 persons to make slanderous and untrue commentary.”
Catron said she had been given legal advice that a cease and desist letter needed to be issued to the parties directly that made the defamatory remarks. Within 48 hours the UDP leader, Mark Scotland and Dwayne Seymour were all issued a cease and desist letter via e-mail.
“I can only speculate as to what specifically Mr Seymour’s comments were about. However these absolutely outrageous statements are hurtful on a personal and professional level and in fact have no basis. I have always advocated against violence towards women and children and consider these statements to be politically motivated,” Catron stated. She further said, “It is quite unfortunate that I have had to publicly respond to these matters at all. However, some persons would misinterpret a non-response as having some meaning to it.”
The 7May Crosstalk show started with a clarification by Solomon about his academic background and an exchange with a caller on air a week before. Following the 30 April show, in which it appeared that Solomon did not correct talk show host Austin Harris when he maintained that Solomon did have a bachelors degree, Catron, who is contesting the election in a different district to Solomon, filed an FOI request with the International College of the Cayman Islands to clarify, and was told that he did not finish the degree.
Solomon cited a CNS news article detailing how he had had to halt his studies because of the health of his daughter as a way of explanation, maintaining that he had never claimed to have a bachelors degree, and said he hoped that was an end of the matter. However, Catron called the show to “clarify the facts”, which sparked a continued exchange over Solomon’s academic qualifications and who was telling the truth about what was said. Following this, Seymour called into the show to make his staments.
Big name endorsement for Burns Conolly
(CNS): George Town independent candidate Burns Conolly has picked up a high profile endorsement from former politician Truman Bodden, who publicly backed his candidate at a campaign meeting on Wednesday evening 6 May. Bodden, a former leader of government business and education minister, said, “Burns is highly qualified; he is someone that this country can have as a leader… It takes people like Mr Conolly to take us to the next level where this country can go back to prosperity.” He went on to say. “Mr Conolly is very competent, experienced and a highly qualified professional and something that this country badly needs in the legislature.’’
According to a release from the campaign, Bodden stated that with a former legislator as a father (Warren Conolly) and a chief education officer as a mother (Islay Conolly), Conolly “comes with the appreciation of the dedication that is necessary to give when you are a member of the Cabinet or Legislative Assembly. It is my distinct pleasure to endorse Mr W. Burns Conolly.”
Bodden went on the say that as an independent candidate, Conolly had the ability to “provide the balance” between the political parties that was badly needed in the legislative assembly at the current time. He said, “I am voting for Burns. I have assessed him. I am satisfied that he is good for the country and I am asking the people of George Town to vote for him and please put him in the Legislative Assembly.”
Conolly said, “It is a distinct honour to have someone of the stature of Mr Truman, and someone with the deep knowledge of the Legislative Assembly, endorse my campaign. I have worked hard to be above the field, providing solutions to issues rather than mudslinging and Mr Truman’s endorsement is a testimony to the result of that work. I thank him wholeheartedly for the support.”
Students told vote counts
(CNS): Less concerned with who they gave their ‘X’ to than ensuring they all went to the polls on 20 May, candidates at the Vision 3 debate on Thursday evening at UCCI told the students that their votes were important and they needed to become part of the democratic process. Sandra Catron told them not to underestimate the power of one and of their vote. “People around the world have died for the right to vote,” she said. “I don’t care if you don’t even take a shower before you go, but just go and vote.”
Along with Catron the young audience heard from a panel of candidates comprising Derrington Miller (Indep GT), Justin Woods (Indep BT), Bernie Bush (Indep WB), Jonathan Piercy (UDP GT), Eddie Tompson (Indep GT), Burns Conolly (Indep GT), Oswell Rankine (Indep NS) and Rolston Anglin (UDP WB). There were no members of the PPM present although an invitation had been extended to them.
During the evening the nine candidates discussed their reasons for running, the environment, the critical issues facing the communities, health care, the constitution, the challenges they have faced in their lives and the disconnect between young people and politics. Offering some food for thought, all nine candidates presented some interesting thoughts about how young people could become more engaged. From bringing civics back to the curriculum, as noted by Conolly, to going to talk to them on their turf, as Piercy said, the candidates were all very keen to see young people become more involved in politics. Above all, however, each one spoke about the importance of their vote on Election Day.
Bernie Bush, who has been working with young people in the district of West Bay for almost 30 years, said he saw himself as a bridge between generations and, agreeing with Catron, he said they should cast their vote for someone. He warned them not to vote against someone because they are female or young but to vote on merit. ”Vote for someone and vote smart. Don’t listen to the rhetoric. Look at what people have done, look attheir track records,” he said adding that those from West Bay might want to vote no 2 there, to enormous applause.
Catron said they should never underestimate the power of one, and she warned them not to be disenfranchised because they saw themselves as only one. “You have a lot of power,” she added saying it was time for change. She said she didn’t care who they voted for so long as they did. “I am but one person and I don’t think you should listen to the rhetoric that one person can’t achieve anything.” Catron said that every day individual people are doing extraordinary things that make a real impact.
Derrington "Bo" Miller told the students he had enjoyed the debate and said he would like to come back whether he was elected or not. He told them that as much as he would like be 21 again he would not want to trade youth for his experience, which was what he wanted to share with his country. Offering his thoughts on the party system, he said that given there were 15,000 voters and as little as 2000 party members he wonder why any voter would join the 2000 when they could join the 13,000 by voting independent.
Also running in George Town, Eddie Thompson said that he believed Cayman was involved in an awakening and he had seen a lot of young people getting more involved in community. He said to them to makes sure they voted for the right reasons and not because people were friends or family but because they as voters felt the person could do the job properly. He said that no politician could be all things to all people and they needed to listen. “I’m welcoming any ideas for discussion,” he said. “We can’t be all things to everybody but what I do promise is, I will do the best I can to get what is right for these islands."
Rolston Anglin told the students that every election is important because democracy is important and they should get involved. He said he hoped in the future he would either be nominating or voting for someone in the room. When it came to making his bid for their vote, he said he had something to offer but that was a judgement for people to make. Above all, he said, his job as a politician was to listen and hear. “If you don’t you can’t be a good representative,” he said. “Exercise your vote, think wisely and make your voices known.”
Week of mobile voting begins today
(CNS): Mobile voting begins on Friday, 8 May, in Little Cayman and continues through the week covering each district and ending with West Bay on Friday, 15 May. People who have applied for mobile voting and who can travel to their stations are asked to do so between 9:00am and 1:00pm. The exception is in North Side, where mobile polling will start at 10:00am. Election workers will spend the rest of the day, until 6pm, travelling to the homes of voters who because of illness or infirmity cannot easily go to the polls. All applications for mobile voting had to be in by 7 May.
Employers are reminded that they must give employees reasonable time off to cast their ballots. Supervisor of Elections Kearney Gomez said the majority of people voting by mobile ballot are police officers and those who will be staffing the polling stations for the General Elections and Referendum on 20 May.
This Friday, election officers are carrying ballot boxes to Little Cayman. With no polling station on the smallest of the three Cayman Islands, voters there had the choice of travelling to West End Cayman Brac on Election Day or applying to take advantage of the new mobile voting facility approved by the legislature last year. Advisories have already been posted around the island telling mobile voters to cast their ballots at the Public Works Compound.
On Monday, 11 May, mobile voting takes place in three districts: Cayman Brac at the Aston Rutty Civic Centre, East End at the William Allen McLaughlin Civic Centre, and North Side at the Craddock Ebanks Civic Centre.
Tuesday, 12 May, is the day for Bodden Town. Mobile voting trailers will be sta-tioned in the parking lot near the James Manoah Bodden Civic Centre. If necessary, mobile voting in Bodden Town will continue into Wednesday.
Wednesday, 13 May, is the day for George Town. Mobile trailers will be parked outside the Smith Road Professional Centre, 150 Smith Road, where the Elections Office is housed. Polling will continue on Thursday if needed.
Thursday, 14 May, is for mobile polling in West Bay. The polling trailers will be stationed outside the old town hall, now the district library and learning centre. Polling will continue on Friday if necessary.
As Gomez has pointed out previously, portable voting booths will be used to give voters privacy when marking their ballots in their own home. Election Office workers are contacting these voters to confirm time frames for the home visits. Election officials who conduct the polling may be accompanied by candidates’ agents and observers who are allowed to watch the procedure but cannot take part.
Cayman can be centre of learning says BT candidate
(CNS): The Cayman Islands could become a centre for excellence when it comes to further education, says independent Bodden Town candidate, Justin Woods. When it comes to finding a viable third pillar to help prop up the local economy behind financial services and tourism, the local businessman said that it has already been demonstrated with St Matthews Medical School that Cayman has the potential to bring more further education institutes to the island as well as develop and expand those that already exist, such as UCCI.
Speaking at a political meeting at the Bodden Town Post office on Tuesday evening (5 May) Woods suggested that there was considerable untapped potential in the business of education. “We have veterinary school, a medical school, a law school as well as UCCI where we can develop the potential for learning here,” he said. “We can have children coming here to learn.” He added that this was a business that would be constantly renewed. Talking with CNS he said this was an idea he had been considering for many years and said with the Marine institute in Little Cayman as well, there was a significant opportunity to develop new business for the country by expanding courses on offer for overseas students. He said with Cayman’s reputation as a financial services sector the country could develop a specialist business management courses designed to meet the needs of those looking to study the offshore sector which would also have enormous benefit for our own students. “It’s a no brainer and I can’t understand why it has not been developed,” he added.
Woods also spoke about the need for a new kind of representation from politicians as he said it takes an election for the people to see their representative. He said politicians spent more time arguing with each other in the Legislative Assembly than taking care of the needs of the people. He said the district of Bodden Town had been neglected but there was a lot of need in the district so it was time to give people the tools to advance themselves and not give them handouts. He estimated that there were as many as 3000 Caymanians out of work but the country had some 27,000 permits with no policies in place to address that or make people’s lives better.
“What is going to happen to our people?” he asked stating that it was time to change things by electing people who cared and who were able to make the changes to make a better life for Caymanians. He also said that the delays on addressing the flooding on Bodden Town were unacceptable when all it required was a pumping station and that the claims by government that the Savannah gully wall had been held up by planning were not true as planning had approved the wall some time ago but the government had not provided the financing.
However, Anthon Eden recently stated at a Chamber Candidate’s District Forum that the delay was down to objections to the plans to build the sea wall by residents in the area which had only recently been addressed and the project was now slatedto go ahead.
Woods also spoke about rising crime, the glass ceiling for Caymanians in the civil service, the failure to promote Cayman as a tourist destination overseas and the money that was being spent on buildings without any investment in people. He said government was spending and borrowing millions of dollars while Caymanians were out of work. He asked the people to think very carefully on Election Day and to consider if they were better of today than in the past before they marked their Xs.
“If you elect me I will be a different kind of representative,” he said adding that if the people wanted better for their children he was the one they should vote for.
Deadline approaches for candidate’s withdrawal
(CNS): The deadline for candidates to withdraw from the General Elections, which will take place on Wednesday, 20 May and for candidates to nominate their agents, who will be permitted to attend the polling stations and counting of the ballots, is this Saturday 9 May, Supervisor of Elections Kearney Gomez said today. He reminded all candidates of a provision in the Ele
Ellio sacrificed for baby girl
(CNS): Facing a considerable amount of criticism in postings on the CNS website and from various quarters on the campaign trail over his undergraduate education, Ellio Solomon, a candidate in the forth coming general election, has told CNS that the only reason he did not complete his degree was because of the birth of his daughter Shawn Renee (left at four months old) in 2000 who has sever disabilities. Solomon said that no one understands the decisions he had to make as a father, but as far as he was concerned his family came first and there was no other choice.
Solomon’s wife Betsy explained that since Shawn, who was born 1 November, became ill suffering seizures a few months after her birth, the couple have had to make many sacrifices for the sake of their daughter, and her husband’s studies were just one of the difficult choices they made. Speaking about the comments and criticisms that her husband has faced, Betsy said it was very hurtful. “When people make unkind comments about other people’s lives, about things that they cannot understand, it’s very painful,” she said, adding that no one can know what it’s like unless they experience it.
She explained that, as a high achiever and only six months shy of finishing his degree, it was incredibly painful for him, but Ellio was forced to quit because of the specialist medical treatment as well as the care their daughter needed. However, Betsy said that they had grown as a family despite the sacrifices and that they thanked God every day for their beautiful little girl. “Every day we are thankful for our daughter because she has made us fight, and fight hard, to help her and other Caymanians,” she said.
Adding that the family had achieved many things, she said that people don’t see the incredible pain and struggle behind the triumphs but in the end their family was more united and stronger for it. Betsy said that from the time Shawn was four months old until she was 5 years old, the couple and their two other daughters did not see her smile, but today at 8 years old and a student at the Lighthouse School their daughter is a bundle of smiles and the family’s pride and joy.
“Shawn does not walk or talk, she smiles, she gestures, she laughs, she holds on tight and she continues to spread joy in our lives and all that she comes in contact with. She is our inspiration. She is the one who keeps us fighting for all of those who cannot fight for themselves,” Betsy added.
She explained that when Ellio speaks out on any subject people can hear his passion and that he does not need to read from any prepared documents as he speaks truly from the heart.
Reflecting on his circumstances, Solomon said that he would have loved to have completed his bachelor’s degree in Science and Business Adminstration at ICCI, which he was taking when Shawn was born, but there was no question of him not taking responsibility for the special care his baby daughter would need, and as the man of the house, he said, he needed to work. “Of courses I would love to have finished but my family and their needs came first,” he added.
Solomon has demonstrated since the launch of the website Caypolitics in 2001, during his time as a host on Rooster’smorning show Crosstalk and since taking to the hustings for election 2009 as a United Democratic Party Candidate that he feels very strongly about the myriad issues affecting his people and has a strong desire to serve them and advance their cause.
West Bay’s wind of change
(CNS): Embarking on his third attempt at securing a seat in the Legislative Assembly, Bernie Bush asked the voters of West Bay not for another chance after eight years, but for just one chance to serve them well. Having come close to being elected twice before, Bush is hoping for third time lucky and in a calm presentation on Monday evening in Hell he told local voters that he felt the wind of change blowing through the district. Telling the audience to vote smart and not straight, he said he would set a new standard of service for an MLA in the district.
“Be wise and vote smart not straight. This should not be about green and red as this tribal system is pulling us apart and dividing the country. Tell your friends and family to give Bernie a chance,” he said.
Bush noted that his record of serving his community for almost 30 years demonstrated that he could get things done and that he cared about his people. In a presentation focusing on the needs of the community and the issues he would like to address, Bush avoided insulting or directly criticizing any of his opponents.
He told the audience that the country had historically failed to invest in its ownpeople which was Cayman’s most precious natural resource. Bush lamented the local tendency to undermine one another and for people to put down those who were successful. He said the community needed to be supportive of those who did well. He noted how other communities around the world supported and protected their own, which in turn fuelled their success, and he said it was something Cayman needed to do.
He said education was incredibly important to the country’s future and noted that the early years were the most significant for children and that resources were badly needed for kindergarten education. He said the calls for more after school programmes were unfounded as the programmes were already there, but the problem was getting young people involved, something that he had spent most of his life doing and if elected he wanted to be able to utilise his skills to being more people together and get more young people engaged.
Bush also noted that the problem with unaudited government accounts owed much to the introduction of the Public Management and Finance Law, which he said was cumbersome and expensive to implement and had been copied from New Zealand, where they themselves were now reconsidering its implementation. He said there was an idiotic amount of bureaucracy in government and that agencies did not communicate properly.
When it came to the numerous issues concerning the financial services sector, he said he had been talking widely with those working in the industry and said it was clear there was a need for more innovative thinking and new approaches. He said there were also untapped opportunities for Cayman’s economy to diversify.
“Some people tell me the lawyers and accountants have been running things for too long and they cannot think outside the box,” he said. “There are ways for us to come up with new approaches for economic development. Eco tourism or sports tourism are just some. We have talked about this for years and I know it can work, I’ve seen it work.”
He explained that these two areas could have a significant impact on tourism overall and Cayman was well placed to encourage both. He also agreed with the thoughts of a number of other candidates on the trail that part of Cayman’s problem with regards the decline in the tourism business overall was the lack of Caymanian faces in the business and that somehow this had to be tackled.
Telling everyone he was his own man and not part of the UDP or the PPM, he said his hands were not tied and asked for a chance to serve.
In 2005 Bush polled over 36% of the electorate, the highest percentage of the vote by any independent candidate other than Moses Kirkconnell, who joined the PPM a few days after the election.
Two polls will be easy to follow says Gomez
(CNS): With only two weeks to go before Cayman goes to the polls not just to elect a government but to vote on the country’s new Constitution, the Supervisor of Elections Kearney Gomez has assured the electorate that with trained election officers on hand to assist and a logical set-up of polling stations, voters will find that “dual polling” will not be a difficult process. After months of preparation for the historic event he said that the process will be smooth and efficient.
The voter then exits the Election area, which is the entrance to the Referendum area where another Field Officer will be stationed here to confirm that the voter is proceeding correctly. The voter will again approach a Polling Clerk, stating name, address and occupation as it appears on the Register of Electors and the information will be entered into a Poll Book. The voter proceeds to the Presiding Officer for the Referendum, who will explain the process and issue the ballot before taking the ballot to a voting booth, to mark it, fold it and return it to the Presiding Officer, who will remove the counterfoil and return the ballot to the voter. Finally the voter will deposit his or her ballot into the ballot box and then exit the polling station.