Premier’s confidence in port support wavers
(CNS): Premier Alden McLaughlin appeared despondent over government’s situation regarding the cruise port campaign, when he appeared at the fourth public meeting on the issue Thursday evening at the Elmslie Church, George Town. During the meeting he appeared to lose confidence in public support for the project for the first time, saying that if he had known how controversial it would become, government might never have embarked on the proposal, adding that people should vote ‘no’ if they think it is not the right decision.
“The truth of the matter is, had we believed this was going to be anywhere near as controversial as it has now become, we probably would not have even touched it,” he said.
In a sombre meeting, Planning Minister Joey Hew, Tourism Minister Moses Kirkconnell and the premier all appeared to lack enthusiasm about promoting the project. They were clearly despondent about what appears to be a failure to break through the growing public opposition, although the premier was still clinging onto claims that, having campaigned on the port over two elections, the government had a mandate.
At one point McLaughlin even appealed for help, asking for suggestions on how best to get government information on the project to the public, as he claimed to be doing his very best to inform people. But when asked to put a hold on the project to allow time for more research and to gather information in a effort to gain public support, he said he did not think there would ever be a time when those opposing the proposal would be satisfied, and that there was enough information in the public domain.
McLaughlin said government had spent six years reaching this point and revised his recent comments that the process so far had cost the public purse $5 million, saying he had been “shocked” to learn it was actually $9 million.
“There is, I believe, enough information out there for people to make the decision about whether or not this is a good idea for Cayman,” he said, although he admitted that voters will not have all the information before they go to the polls. But he said he did not think government could change the minds of those who are passionately opposed and feel it is a terrible idea; for those who are agnostic or unsure, there is enough information.
“The reality is if you don’t think this is the direction that Cayman should go then you should vote no and the government will abide by whatever the people’s decision is.”
McLaughlin once again made the claim that the cruise industry would die without piers and said the numbers of people that depended on the cruise sector was nearly five thousand. However, the premier once again failed to note that many of those are taxi drivers and owners, as well as tour operators who also cater to the growing and increasingly much more lucrative overnight guests.
It has also been established that the cruise lines are not going to stop coming. Even the premier admitted that the business would not go away overnight and even with the emergence of bigger ships, there are still dozens of smaller or boutique luxury boats sailing this region, all of which want to call on Cayman.
But finally appearing to see that public opinion is not broadly in support of the project, McLaughlin continued to press home a message of fear that unless Cayman gives the cruise lines what they want, people here will lose their jobs, businesses, homes and be in dire circumstances, despite his claims of a robust economy and the continuous and apparently unstoppable overnight tourism growth.
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Category: development, Local News, Politics
And they compound it with investing millions in a turtle farm in the Brac…do they just like to spend money…these guys are playing with billions of dollars while a large percentage of our school children went to school this morning without lunch money…”NATIONAL VOTE”!
The underestimated support of the other side of your position is YOUR fault Mr. Premier. Any lawyer worth his salt should know better. Were you blinded? Was there something shiney and bright that held your attention one way?
Had you and the Unity Govt members done a proposal, had public meetings about what was proppsed, accepted feedback from ALL of the voters who attended the meetings and write in with comments, then carried out the proper EIAs and surveys necessary, and then held a referendum or similar national vote, Mr. Premier you and the Unity Govt would have been well informed on how the voters felt about this project.
But Mr. Premier what you and the Unity Govt members did was the opposite of what I list above. The Unity Govt tried to force this project down our gullets without any condensed milk, and now you acting like we should feel sorry for you all.
But this is all your fault, the fault lies with you Mr. Premier, and with Moses, Joey, Tara, Juliana, Dwayne, David, Barbara, Eugene, Austin, Roy McT for their unwavering support of your leadership on this matter.
But dont worry Mr. Premier, miracles do happen, and you will soon get yours by Christmas.
My advice to you Mr. Premier, is to stop this cruise port proposal, save the Unity Govt the embarassment that will come if you continue, save the little bit if decency that may be left in your legacy as an MLA.
Sleep with your eyes open because many can see that you are being played from within by McKeeva, Eugene, Austin and Dwayne.
There is no shame in listening to the people Mr. Premier.
What happened about the letter the National Trust wrote to government? Did the trust get the response they were looking for? If not, SHOWDOWN. Go National Trust!!
Vote NO!!, Don’t not let the Premier and the Speaker fool you so they can win!! VOTE NO!
Just watch the short 20sec segment between 1:07:20 and 1:07:40 from the meeting on Saturday evening in Savannah https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeK_tnrcl_E and hear the Premier LAUGHINGLY acknowledge that even if the project gets the go ahead with the 19 December referendum, ‘NOTHING’ is going to be done over the next 28 days.
So why not hold the referendum on 16 January 2020 when everyone who traveled for Christmas is back, when the Christmas activities are over and and we can close the bars as at every other election and referendum?
He’s running from them 300+ citizens who exercised their right to register and did so because they want to vote ‘NO’.
That’s Alden’s and Mc’s idea of ‘leadership’, and Moses, Julie, Roy, Tara, Joey, JonJon, Barbara, Austin, David and Capt Eugene are all content to march behind him singing to the top of their little hearts: “Follow the leader, follow the leader”.
The older generation have failed this island. And they’ve managed to make it look like it’s the young generation’s fault. We won’t make the same mistakes you’ve made, and that’s a promise. This referendum is living proof that the younger generation are not gonna take bullshit.
VOTE NO!
Excuse me but whether you acknowledge it or not you all have reach where you are today with the help of seniors. We might not have done everything right, and yes mistakes were made, but you whoever you are is also disparaging your own parents so no need too get too lofty. I am a senior and I have done all that I could do to help make meaningful changes during my lifetime as well a raising my children, getting then educated and each one holds a very important position in this community. I also showed up at the polls for each election and voted very strategically to implement change. Do not forget your manners to seniors.
SO the man that is in charge of the country is shocked to find that the cost of the piers is almost double what he thought it was. Hey, whats $4 million between friends.
Especially when it’s not your money
I have worked for over 15 years in George Town with cruise ship passengers. They are an important part of our tourism industry. We need to improve the experience of these visitors as they exist now before we consider bringing more. So many things lacking with the number of passengers we have now. Shade, benches, public restrooms, drinking fountains, etc. Let’s focus on making our existing cruise visitors rave about Cayman and come back for a week to experience our true Cayman. Let’s create a quality over quantity culture. Cayman has so much to offer, let’s not sell out to the masses and lose the tourism product that Cayman was built on. Vote NO,,,
Exactly, instead of dredging and extending the port so ships can dock, let’s work on our existing port and install benches and trees etc. I don’t think the tourists mind being tendered to the shore, in fact, they get a nice view of town being tendered in. Let’s work on what happens once they reach the shore, not what happens when they’re docking, because that aspect is fine already! VOTE NO!
If anyone thinks the Opposition will do a better job watch Finance committee. These Guys have been questioning Ministers and Civil Servants for 3 days. They pretend to know everything but it is clear they are are sad case case of the blind leading the confused.
Their questioning of the Acting DPP made me sick and concerned.
Come on Opposition do better. Stop trying to win the Election in finance committee…that as already been tried and failed.
Thank you so much for your insightful comment. I can recall talking with cruise passengers standing in line, just hoping there was a beer and a bathroom at the end. Most of those I talked with that day (this was more than a year ago) did not have an especially good day here.
We have to do better for those who already come ashore before we can attempt to garner more.
Unlike some of those who comment here, I don’t believe the Premier or Deputy Premier are evil, or even self-serving, just out of step with our current needs. I think there was a time when the ‘finger piers’ would have served us well, but the current Speaker chose to cancel that awarded contract and tried to sole-source it to CHEC.
I think the time has passed for cruise pier expansion, and we must now focus on infrastructure improvement, downtown upgrading and especially dump mitigation. I think we need to spend money on improving the core of the Cayman Islands, and preserving that which is the reason for visitors coming here in the first place. Visitors come here because we are a place of purity of natural resources and relative safety. If either of those two things are threatened, we will lose visitors and our tourism model will suffer.
Well said Beaumont, but I would add education to your list.
The battle is on social media and the vote no logo is clear. This is another Folly by Alden and the party will pay dearly. Even if he was to win the port, the legal challenges will pour in and the people will vote in a Govt that respects their wishes. The project will get killed.
Alden please listen to reason and stop the political suicide and that of your colleagues. Your Govt has a massive infrastructure problem which is a product of success.
It’s time to clean up the traffic situation by implementing invovated solutions. We can look back at a scales down version of your port that we can finance which doesn’t require killing the environment. Think that guy James Whittaker had a good idea using cable cars and floating platform. We are Cayman the jewel of the Caribbean we will never destroy our national treasure so people can come here and see concrete…
Every time a politician speaks out on this issue it is clearer than ever who they are ruled by. Doesn’t the Premier understand that mans law and natural law cannot co-exist? Mans law is one based on “order” and yet such systems always fail when ruled by those who use them to dominate and control, destroy and commodify. Co-existing involves a level of balance and a sense of truth involving all matters and decisions. Running around trying to promote the propaganda as the “truth” can only run so far. Every person who has blindly supported or knowingly supported this movement is worshipping false ideologies and idols. A cruise ship is not your god. The government is not your church. Every person involved in this has the potential to clean and clear themselves of this mess if they are willing to step back into the light in which created them. Surely, if one desires to really bring truth to the people and end this controversy, one only has to write every capital letter of this message and request assistance (at no charge) from the one who knows and has known the Truth from the beginning.
Okay I’ll play the devil’s advocate, no cruise ship facility. If the Cruise lines are not lying and are numbers go down to 1.5 million people. Dart will be buying all the stores and companies in town. George Town will turn into part 2 of Camana Bay. Harbour Drive will close to pedestrian traffic. Population will double, Caymanians will still have a hard time to find a well paying job. Minimum wage will go to $15 per hour. Sargasso Sea weed will still be coming from now on. Stay over guests will drop to environmental impact ( sea weed). Cleaning it off beaches will create low paying jobs too. People will finally get why a pier is needed especially a Cargo Dock. Chapter continues………plan b?
Quite apart from there being no logic to the causality you suggest, just how is building the dock going to a) stop Dart buying everything b) increase the population? c) increase minimum wages? Particularly like the implication that a dock will stop the sargassum! LOL
9.25pm You forgot the most obvious, global warming which will put us all underwater so the cruise ships can sail right over us.
Geez so from $5m to $9m…80% more than first estimated…please don’t tell me Roy helped you with the original?
Here is a good blog from another person with a first hand experience.
https://blueoceanfever.wordpress.com/2019/11/23/the-mitigation-mirage/
Vote No.
I never did support Mr. Alden with every decision he made…however, being there is now a coalition government, I now have no other choice. I cannot support the other crew that is opposing…they have their own agenda of overthrowing the present government. The opposition is listening to a select few which try to discredit ‘heads of departments’ for their themselves and their cohorts to land these top jobs in our country.( With no experience) Do you, by chance, think that it was just the opposition fighting for Caymanians to be head of departments…no…it is this select few that is promising the opposition votes for return favors. Why do you think there is so much upheaval in the Fire Service and the Port Authority.
I hope the government of the day do not get weak from the pressure and bend to their demands, and in-turn, leave the islands, its residents and visitors alike vulnerable to their incompetence.
Confused
Ahhh, the LA is the waste bin of misspent careers…next stop faded obscurity, or better yet, jail, for some of these guys that refuse to enact SIPL Law.
We seem to have a government that doesn’t listen or care about its people…could the opposition be worse?
Al, you really screwed this one up, plain and simple.
Is this Whogene??
YES TO THE MONOPOLY! Monopolies really really really love the “environment”
So – the man who has spearheaded 6 years of wasted planning, expenditure of 9 MILLION DOLLARS, and abused those who opposed him is now saying – “ ….IF YOU DON’t AGREE WITH ME THAT THE CRUISE PORT IS A GOOD IDEA – VOTE NO “.
It has finally dawned on him that he backed the wrong horse, and totally misjudged the public sentiment.
Watch out Joey Hew, and maybe even Moses “I can part the waters” Kirkconnell. Alden’s next project – find a scapegoat to throw under a bus and blame for failing to sell the cruise ship port development to “ Joe Public “.
Alden please just stop now. Stop spending the people money on promoting this project. Stop with the ads, including at the Cinema Stop with the flyers in our Mailboxes. Meetings with false information and lack of information. “Experts”telling us what we should do with our beloved George Town Harbor. Just Stop. And all registered voters get out and VOTE. Yes or No , your decision. But Vote.
Alden’s biggest problem is his arrogance and belief that he is smarter than everybody else. As such he refuses to listen to anybody who has a differing view.
I personally spoke with him about this port issue and warned him that Moses was leading him astray and he just blew me off as if I was an idiot. On November 19th I will go to the polls and have my chance to return the favor.- VOTE NO.
Its not just his displayed arrogance by itself , its this very arrogance thrown in the faces of the generational Caymanian citizens of this territory ( along with everyone else ) that is appalling , for a supposed government leader. He may only now be battling with some humility, at the 11th hour. Which makes me suspicious even more, I’m not buying his violin solo.
Do not fear Honorable Premier, you are the best leader we ever had and get the port done as we need the cruise people plus all the extra jobs it will create. Thank you
Cruise tourism represents less than 3% of Territorial GDP, and the best year ever contributed less than half a fart (around $4mln) to General CIG Revenue. We would do better to banish CCL and RCL and shift to catering to higher-end liners like Virgin, Radisson, Silver Cloud with better super yacht moorings and enhanced overall overnighting cachet. We don’t even have a sidewalk or lighting on the East side of West bay road in the heart of the Hotel Tourism Zone. Let’s get it together.
While the voters were (once again) cat-napping this week, Alden and McLean agreed to major Constitutional changes, without public consultation, or Referendum, which strips the Governor of reserve powers (the whole point of a Governor as backstop). The Governor will no longer have the power to write proactive/beneficial legislation, disallow legislation by veto, and/or write standing orders for the LA. Allowing those that maintain absurdly low standards of governance to delete these backstop powers is hugely destabilizing for our financial services sector, and all honesty-striving citizens of the Cayman Islands.
I thought Arden was against the constitutional changes, but I guess what caused him to side up with Alden is the whole same-sex civil union fiasco. They want to drag their feet on it, and now the governor can’t force them to enact what the courts ordered.
Governor won’t be able to but UK gov and parliament still will
Thank you Neo-colonialist for reminding us that it is better to have our democracy and self-determination overridden by a UK Governor than to hold our leaders accountable for the decisions they make.
You assume that these powers- such as the power to write proactive/beneficial legislation, disallow legislation by veto, and/or write standing orders for the LA, are all positive things to be used responsibly and for the benefit of the people.
That is a dangerous assumption. We as a people should, through our elected MLAs push them to pass the legislation we as a democracy demand which are reflected of our societal needs. Likewise, striking down our domestic legislation should not be in the gift of the Governor. Remember there is no guidance on when and how he/she can use it. Dangerous and crazy in this era. Finally, writing standing orders is a hold over from when the Governor was the president of the Legislative Assembly. That power was long removed. Let’s make these changes ASAP and improve our democracy.
You fail to realize that none of the MLA’s have a brain.
So no, we should not let them legislate and do as they please.
And this whole idea of them listening to us when drafting legislation… i think the people’s voice on the pier is loud and clear, but do you see any of the MLA’s listening? Didnt think so.
10.04am I think you will find The UK Govt still retains all these powers, it’s just the Governor who has lost them.
Sounds like Alden did some internal polling and the results aren’t good. Get out and vote NO every vote is needed to stop the madness of these people.
If Georgetown must have a dock, then please revisit the Scandinavian floating, fold away docks that appear to be usable after hurricanes or even Norwesters.
There is no legit case for pier. We don’t have a protected harbour; it doesn’t save time, extend shore leave, or add a second tour. It doesn’t create boats that aren’t even in the long-range Draft planning stages. All it does is hand CCL and RCL exclusivity to bar or allow their preferred liner clients to power down and increase their margin, and the Cayman people will pay for it ecologically and financially through a widening passenger arrivals gap to that which has been provisionally contracted!
#%$!%@ off.
“Wouldnt have even touched it”. Yeah right.
Let me translate that for you.
Alden: “The other MLAs are starting to question my authority and are worried that they might not have their seats come the next election”.
Alden: “Sh!t… what if the entire Party is disbanded and no-one ever votes for PPM or CDP again after this charade”…
Alden: *chatting with the folks from GIS* ” alright guys, CPR picking up steam now. We’ve awoken the sleeping giant and the polls are starting to show that there’s a good chance we could lose the vote… we need an out just in case the vote swings no… what do I say????
And let me reiterate.
All the MLAs who have shoved this farce of a project down our throats should be worried. For you will not be in power come next election or any election after that.
The youth has arrived and it’s time for you fossilized dinosaurs to make way for real change. Change that will better the Cayman Islands and not line the pockets of all your comrades.
Dont let the door hit you on the way out!!
How much of the $9 million has been spent trying to discredit the petition through the wasteful verification process that could have been effected by a statistically significant random sampling, or is that extra?
Extra, the cost on the project so far do not include the PR campaign or the verification process, probably somewhere in the realm of 10+ million
The verification process itself likely cost millions, and was entirely unnecessary for multiple reasons. Any accountability?
Don’t fall for the crocodile tears. We need to vote this down, them out, and investigate their conflicts and accounts towards pressing charges. We’ve already been duped out of $5mln – more than the last cruise partner settlement! They can’t at the 11th hour start re-writing their catalog of sneaky moves over a decade in the making in hopes of some sympathy and leniency. Remember what they’ve been doing, and keep your bayonets sharp.
Fix the traffic, fix the dump, and stop being useless driftwood.
Alden thought he could brainwash us once again! Sorry to break it to you but Caymanians nowadays don’t take bullshit!
You’ve met your match!!!
this whole thing is not about dock or coral it is about ALDEN!
No no…you don’t get to fight the people and then when you may lose say “I didn’t know it was a fight”. Now how about stepping down and stop giving away what’s left of the country…you have been a disgrace this term. You have done so much damage you should be too ashamed to show yourself in the public of young Caymanians whose futures you have destroyed.
It is also the way that Alden and the Govt has behaved around the referendum that is so concerning: ie manipulation of the question, holding it so close to Christmas, making it 50%+ of registered voters for No to win, excluding voters registered in September…. This all adds up to the perception of Alden / the Govt behaving in an underhand manner and seeking to subvert democracy.
Alden, it must be hard looking out into that audience night after night and searching for just one supporter other than your hired minions handing out pieces of paper making sure that no one can have a voice..Communist China has less restrictions..Each meeting continues to dwindle in time and in numbers. The one in GT had so few people, it didn’t even go to 10pm but finished half an hour earlier at 9:30pm.
It’s time Alden, the people have spoken and continue to speak loud and clear. It would be better now to suck this up, admit you are wrong, refocus on real priorities and get on with running the country..The majority of the people of this country don’t want this…No amount of meetings with a snake oil dealer telling us that he can grow millions of coral in a few months and they can lift 3 tons of coral and move it to another location without it dying. This is absolutely ludicrous..How stupid do you or he think we are? Has he ever done this on this scale? NO!! Why should Cayman be his guinea pig? Trust him you say, heck I don’t even trust you anymore. You can still save face with this but you have to act soon.
Just my two cents…
Alden please just go away and take Big Mac with you. You guys deserve each other
Please don’t forget to take Moses, Joey,Tara, Austin,Dwayne and the rest of his comrades with you!!!!! Once we stop this Madness or next Job is to trigger an early election…..Vote No!!
when Alden is gone we will have the option of Arden or Ezzard !
All our current options are equally scary. Bring on new, educated blood.
Alden, you suddenly paying attention? Good. Now explain to us how your open door immigration policies to minimum wage workers from around the world are helping the average Caymanian. You are destroying lives and livelihoods, for what? Where and how do you expect the Caymanian people to live?
One thing at the time, please
For a billion a year I expect these characters to at least be able to attempt multi-tasking.
alden you have 8 yeears to get this sorted…..that is your real failure but typical do-nothing ppm.
once the referendum petition succeeded…you should have resigned immediately.
although i do know that that cig does not do accountability, sackings or resignations………zzzzzzzzzzzzz. welcome to wonderland.
Do the right thing Alden and abandon this project and those efforts and finances greater priorities like education, jobs for Caymanians, traffic state of the art CCTV system
Dont forget the finger print system at airport. Or will this let 20% of population
go into hiding.
What really needs to be done:
• An organized and reliable public transport system
• We should redo the main roads into town and make them JUST highways, meaning that there shouldn’t be any roundabouts or turn offs or turn ins, just entrances and exits to get on and off the highway, but this is something that would take years to finish, as we would also need to build side roads for the shops that were originally along the main road.
• Fix the dump. Build a recycling plant in east end.
• Revitalize George Town! Our capital doesn’t look like a capital and downtown looks too mediocre to even call it downtown! We need to make Cardinal Avenue a pedestrian street only with benches and trees, and have actual shops line the street, not over expensive or cheap touristy looking places. We should redo some of the buildings, they’re looking dated and are falling apart! And our court house is just a white brick! As well as the LA! It’s the most unattractive government building I’ve seen, we should build one that resembles the US capitol or something like that, something that catches people’s attention.
We need to plant more trees, and build more apartments over the shops, like a generic type building, shops at the bottom and apartments at the top, so downtown doesn’t look dead when the work day ends and there’s actually inhabitants at night! And more clubs downtown! We need a night life, we’ve given too much vibrancy to seven mile beach, I think it’s GT’s turn to shine!!
But right now, our capital is turning into a mess! Crime is increasing rapidly, the traffic is horrendous, and the trash is building up, it’s starting to look like downtown Kingston! We might as well make Camana Bay our new capital…
8:30. Nice but did you know that it should be Capitol for the head district where Government is conducted. It it capital when you say money or as in capital letters for proper names.
Quack, quack, oops, wrong. And don’t even get me started on your post. 🤣
I am going to VOTE NO!
Beware fellow “no” voters. This battle is far from over. This could be a planned feint to build complacency and reduce turnout at the polls. We need every single person who thinks “no” to vote “No!”.
Don’t ease up the pressure CPR.
I like the cut of your jib!
Alden…it is never too late to repent and continue to serve…listen to your people bro…not Moses and Ju Ju…they are not conservative with $$$$….I supported you for years and was about to drop you over the port…wait…now you have to do us a favour and stop the turtle farm in the Brac…
7 31 pm, there is no turtle farm in the Brac, NONE
They have it budgeted for in 2020
Im voting no to the port and in 2021 no do Alden.
Red Bayer.
Me Too! NO to the port and Alden.
Vote No
Poor Alden. What a shame. Maybe you should have listened when you had the chance. How did you not think this was going to be controversial? How could you not have realised this? Really?
These are priorities:
21st century recycling and waste management system
Mount Trashmore closing then mining, NOT CAPPING
Education
Public transport system
“highways” interchanges
You would not see people objecting to it.
+ Vocational education
http://www.inspirecaymantraining.com
21st century Government must establish a strategy that seeks to educate highly productive, skilled Caymanians to meet the demands of the labor market.
It must develop a diversified, knowledge-based economy to ensure the country continues to thrive over the long-term.
To accomplish that it has to overhaul its primary and secondary schools.
For university education, the goal must be of creating the best-educated citizens, fully prepared to participate in the global economy.
BS. It doesn’t matter what you do in this country there will always be PILES of opposition
How do you propose we pay for these none cash generating projects? Caymanians and expats both refused to pay their garbage fees before. We need projects that generate cash? I hope they vote against the port so thousands loose their jobs and leave the island so we don’t have any traffic jams because no one has a job to go to except me a johanna in the financial services.
Absolutely! We already have a very successful Tourism product, we don’t need even more tourists. We need more solutions to other problems as mentioned above.
amen
SIPL before anything. These eels think they can just continually bury their secrets and avoid jail…because you let them!
Emissions control, water testing for our beaches, the list goes on all day
…not until the first 5 are implemented and running smoothly (working)
International airport in EE. Make GT local only.
Resign now Alden. The public have figured you out. You are a slimmer version of McKeeva Bush fueled by arrogance and a very poor attitude. You are a huge disappointment and have failed as a leader.
He said he would resign if the project is rejected.
Nope. He said he would have to reconsider his role as Premier. Note the subtle difference
Now he realizes where he stands on this matter (which is nowhere) and that we Caymanians refuse to be forced to do this by these fools. If he and the rest of them were honourable people they would just scrap the plans and go back to the drawing board and not bother to have the referendum. But the problem is they are on “too deep” with Verdant Isle and Lord knows who else, to back out now, without a probable lawsuit.
Has he said an honest thing yet in this debacle??? What makes you believe that won’t be back tracked on….
And you believe him?
Now that would demonstrate leadership. Won’t happen tho. When has Alden ever delivered on a promise , and getting into bed with McKeeva just to hold on to power shows how addicted he is. That’s his legacy – the pictures and video of that clown with his wig hanging half way off ranting in the Speakers Chair.
Vote No
6.15pm Lie. He said no such thing. What he said was that if the referendum was against the port then maybe he would have to consider his position as leader.
Well i hope he ready too because I know loads of people who are voting NO. The only thing these politicians are good for nowadays is being a speedbump.
He can’t run again for Premier anyway.
Why? Because the Constitution says so? They have already proved that document’s only relevance was to get Alden an OBE. Otherwise is can be (and is) routinely ignored.
Been hearing whispers about Alden wanting to taking the new ministries they are making, because it is all the stuff he likes or about him taking a turn as Speaker for a term and letting someone else be Premier
Because our term limit is really only a facade one term and the person can be the Premier again. It doesn’t even have to be a full term as far as I am aware, they could have an election, form the government call for early elections the next day and dissolve the parliament and that would mean Alden would be eligible again because technically it was another “parliamentary term”
Term limits don’t really work with the Westminster Parliamentary system anyway
I think that would end up in court immediately if it happened.
MBE
Even more reason to vote No.
I relish the day that I can play the song from Titanic and watch the PPM ship sink to the bottom of the depths.
Only question is whether or not you think Alden has the balls to go down as captain of the ship?
I’d say no.
And throw away $150k a year? Aye, right then!
Alden and his teams have done a great job for this country. Like all politicians, nobody is perfect and not all decisions are the right ones. It would be a shame to see his administration brought down over this issue. Better recognize the public mood and back off now. Pull the port. Pull the referendum. Finish your term with the budget fixed, the airport rebuilt, the dump being remedied at last. History will be kinder to you.
I agree not all decisions were the right, my problem is which one has been right?
We know the education policy was wrong.
The policy towards cost of living was wrong.
The immigration policy was wrong.
The environmental policy was wrong.
The planning policy was wrong.
The approach to the port was wrong.
The approach towards traffic was wrong.
The approach towards managing beach vendors was wrong.
The approach towards law and order was wrong.
Where exactly have they done the right thing?
Garbage collection. WRONG.
Waste management. WRONG
Miller/Shaw.WRONG.
Retrospective pension law changes… WRONG!
“..the premier said he would consider his position as the country’s leader if the campaigners did succeed in stopping the project. ‘
Alden knows what’s best. Nothing is worth the risk of having people like Ezzard in charge.
5:57, you are a prime example of what is wrong with Cayman. Idiotic statement, proof of a fool.
Care to explain your reasoning?
VOTE NO!
Re-election not looking so good now?
A lesson in history from TCI. The Premier there pushed a plan to build the cruise dock right in Cockburn Town. It didn’t go down too well so the electorate kicked him out. The reason I know that is he told me all about it when I was there in November 2004.
The dock was eventually built about four miles south of the capital and is apparently doing very well. I was there when the pier was built and it’s pretty much a stand-alone operation. We lost a couple of dive sites but the overall impact was minimal. That’s not what’s being proposed here.
Leave it and let it be his legacy.
I am actually impressed that his position has changed in this way.
The cruise ships will NOT stop coming if this pier is not built. TRUTH
Why did cruise tourism drop by 500,000 in 2013? Was it because cruiseships where told in 2012 we were not building a dock?
You do realise that itineraries are planned and sold well in advance and that the cruise lines would have known well before a year in advance that there would be no dock the following year?
This is what happens when you don’t listen to your people…You had no mandate and you knew it..You brought these money grabbers here thinking that we Caymanians would believe them because they come from foreign…Those days done Alden, the old style Mckeeva politricks don’t work anymore.
Our country deserves better and we are not about to sell out to the Cruise Lines..Threatening us and telling us we are a third world country because we don’t have a cruise port is insulting to the people of this country. We chose to be different and we have done much better than any other island that has a port..Why can’t Alden and gang see that?
I am voting NO!!!
GTS Voter!!
EXACTLY, we’re the most prosperous Caribbean island without needing much of what the other islands have, yes there’s room for improvement but overall we are a very well off country!
VOTE NO!
8:09 all the prosperity you mention above did not happen because the people voted NO!
Me too!!!! GTS
Fix the damn dump Alden
Enhanced landfill mining, not capping.
Landfill mining separates waste into directly recyclable materials (glass, plastic, metals, aggregates) and a refuse-derived fuel fraction, which is further converted into high-added-value products. Using the new plasma gasification technology, it is possible to transform this refuse-derived fuel fraction into hydrogen and a mineral residue fraction that is then upcycled into a green, low-carbon cement.
This sort of mining can transform landfills, particularly those in urban environments, from a threat and a cost, into an opportunity for resource recovery.
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/06/landfill-mining-recycling-eurelco/
Landfills: A future source of raw materials.
Decontamination of landfills and open dumpsites could prove profitable – both financially and for the environment.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180323090958.htm
Fix the @*#:@^@(@^# TRAFFIC! #&#^- these politicians.
But that would require poor folk imported from elsewhere living in close proximity to rich folk imported from elsewhere. There would have to bars and restaurants where everyone could feel welcome. There would have to be affordable housing near multi million dollar condos. People would actually have to be able to live near where they work, which would have to be near where their children go to school.
Just like the old days when Cayman worked so well, for everyone?
I wonder whether Mac and Alden believe what rhey have done was worth it?
Hey at least the piers will give the passengers a closer view of the dump.
Why don’t you start supporting these Caymanians to open their own dive shops? Why don’t you push young Caymanians to be dive instructors? Forget the stupid port.
Give people real jobs. Not these ancient jobs that worked in your day. Not just the accountant lawyer doctor nurse jobs that skilled people are already in. Not just the mechanic, plumber electrician. Why hasn’t government officials ever truly pushed people to be entrepreneurs? Why hasn’t the government ever encouraged Caymanians to be the next Tanya Streeter? Why are we at the whims of foreigners that don’t care for the island? Why can’t any of the politicians swim? Why aren’t they certified scuba divers? Have any of them been surfing in SS? Have any of them been diving in East End or Diving in Cayman Brac to see Footes underwater Atlantis? If not, step down all of you. How can you promote an island that you don’t even know? Just because you eat some Christmas beef, conch and turtle. That just means you know how to eat.
Why would a Caymanian want to be the next Tanya Streeter when the government turned on and shunned the last Caymanian Tanya Streeter?
Oh my. I had no idea they did this to her. It’s very embarrassing.
And yet the government and civil service responsible for it are not embarrassed. They feel no shame.
Damn, you have a great point that makes me think a lot. I haven’t done any of those things either. I would say though that being Caymanian and leaving some of what Cayman offers on the table IS Caymanian; after all its all ours so what’s the hurry to experience it. So expats end up having seen more of some things than we have. But that doesn’t mean this isn’t our land pal.
So you want to promote our island but don’t know for yourself what you are promoting? It is still our land. We live where people vacation. I’m sure you go to the big countries and do the tourist stuff there. Just make the time to see our island and the valuable aspects of it. There are a lot of hidden gems in Cayman, let’s enjoy some of it ourselves too. It shouldn’t just be left for tourists.
When was the last time you went kayaking to Owens Island in Little Cayman?
This is true, and Dive Shops are actively looking to employ Caymanian graduates of the PADI programs at Inspire Cayman Training. Sign up now!
25 years too late. Caymanians were actively driven from that industry. BTW, what are these jobs paying…..?
They don’t pay as well as other jobs, but it’s a job. Diving is also a job that requires passion and the love and respect for the ocean. It’s a job that allows you the opportunity to travel and meet a lot of people. However it pays a hell of a lot more than minimum wage. Plus the really ambitious ones can eventually open their own dive shops.
The base pay is little above minimum wage. Even if there may be substantial tips, banks and lending institutions do not count them. The result is that for practical reasons the breadwinner of a family, unless they have other funds, literally cannot afford to be in the industry.
And now they’re actively drawing them back in. Look to the future, stop living in the past.
They are drawing them back only because they need to retire and have no one to sell to.
Well said 5:08PM. They do not know their islands nor, even worse, do they know their own people.
Thank you 5.08.
Great post apart from one sentence. ‘Why are we at the whims of foreigners that don’t care for the island’? I think you’ll find that foreigners care VERY much for your island. We aren’t the ones taking a turkey or refrigerator in exchange for votes. You KNOW that has happened previously in a certain district!
Then you are a foreigner that cares for the island. You would not be classed in the same group of foreigners that do not care for the island.
Hence generalizations are never good.
Generally speaking
PADI Dive certification courses available at Inspire Cayman Trainkng: https://www.inspirecaymantraining.com/courses/padi-training-program/
Jobs out there for those who qualify.
We absolutely positively love to see it
Couldn’t agree more let’s creat a miracle.