McLean ‘resigns’ from NRA a month after appointment
(CNS): Officials from the National Roads Authority have confirmed that Cabinet is considering a new board chairperson as Gilbert McLean has resigned from the post a month after he was officially appointed. However, CNS understands that McLean, who heads up the UCCI board, never formally accepted the position in the first place and may never have attended any meetings.
At a time when the NRA is undertaking a huge amount of costly roadworks and is attempting to manage the increasingly chaotic congestion, the board has been without a chairperson since the end of November when Alric Lindsay stepped down.
Stanley Panton has been acting chairperson since then, which will continue until Cabinet makes a formal appointment. Dominique Williams, Decia M. Foster and Peter Campbell remain on the board as directors.
CNS was unable to reach McLean for comment, but we understand that the former health minister in McKeeva Bush’s 2001 Cabinet had declined the position, but because his appointment was officially gazetted, he had to go through the process of resigning.
Because there are no minutes publicly available for 2023, we have been unable to confirm if McLean ever attended any meetings. CNS has asked about the missing minutes, and we are awaiting a response.
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Category: Politics
What a shambles! And these people are going to make an important decision on the East -West arterial!
A bit off topic, but NRA related. And WA related.
For decades we (residents and visoters) waited for the road between Rum Point and Kaibo to be resurfaced. Finally it was done in recent years. No sooner was it done and along comes the Water Authority and/or other utilities to dig up /tear up the newly surfaced road and make patchwork that any 5 year old child would do. This happens all too often!
I have travelled the world and seen roadworks done in North America and Europe. The utilities are put in first! Then the final road surface completed – NOT the other way around! Why is this permitted over and over? Shouldn’t the Ministry responsible and the NRA, want this done correctly?
It happens all the time in the third-world UK, too.
“Nautical – one 345” – Exactly!! I wrote the same to an MP years ago…including the fact that utility companies should restore the road surfaces to the same quality they found it.
Who oversees this? Apparently no one in no department!
I was wondering how this man, who must be nearing 80 years would be able to competently function, simultaneously, in both of those demanding positions. Good to know that he had the good sense to decline that appointment. Too bad that the “First Class Civil Service” could not even get the announcement right.
This is a classic!!
“Officials from the National Roads Authority” would have had nothing to do with creating this fiasco. That is by statute the remit of Cabinet who relies on the Ministry responsibly for the NRA to bring a paper recommending the appointments of members.
Clearly the Ministry and/or Cabinet screwed this up but not wanting any dust on their garments, couldn’t even take responsibility and communicate to the media. Seemingly the NRA officials were told to deal with it.
Pathetic
World Class!! Eh, Mr. DG and Mr. Governor??
10:45 NRA is not part of the civil service. You mean you can’t figure out that an Authority is run by a private sector board.
To achieve real change return the NRA to the civil service.
NRA is civil service.
NRA follows the instructions of the minister/cabinet. They don’t make decisions themselves. They have to request funds from the minister so it’s the minister that dictates what happens. Might as well be a government department! No wonder they keep losing board members!
world class harassment at the highest level, soon come out don’t need CMR to help.
GOVERNANCE RED FLAG: “Cabinet is considering a new board chairperson” is not how independent well-functioning Boards work. Either the members choose a Chair from amongst their own seats, including an interim acting Chair, or a nomination committee is established by them to seek a competent universe of qualified candidates. Every Board should have a succession and oversight continuity policies. Cabinets cherry-picking their preferred rubber-stamping helmsman means the effect of the Board and its independence are undermined, in effect a sham, and that would be more confirmation of corruption for the FATF in their ongoing scrutiny of our jurisdiction.
Whoever you are, waving your governance red flag, this is a mantra that you keep repeating and others have replied to you previously in other threads. In the private sector, or wherever you may come from, what you are saying might apply. However, in these islands it has been and will continue to be that Government Boards are politically appointed as are the Chairmen of those Boards. Whether or not you, or I, agree is irrelevant. The laws of these islands dictate how these matters are dealt with, not what we might think is right.
Perhaps Minister Juliana O’Connolly might be asked what she relied upon to unilaterally appoint Gilbert as Chair without his consent?!? Shouldn’t Wayne ask her to surrender that Ministry if she can’t be bothered to follow basic procedures or even common courtesy? How can the public have any confidence in her handle any of her entrusted responsibilities? Demote her please.
8:39 am you are confused or just want an excuse for some Julianna bashing. The NRA and it’s chairmanship falls under the remit of MP Jay Ebanks. Your comments need to be directed at him and his ministry.
8:39 MsJulie is not the Minister for NRA. Are you okay?
Look at where Gilbert ran in the last election.
All opponents of the current MP have been appointed to Government Boards.
Can we now also fix CIAA board.
Gilbert and others his age need to be put out to pasture. They are no longer capable of keeping up with the workload. We must have young. bright, qualified and exoerirnced Caymanians who can be appointed to head these boards. And why always male dominated. we have many women who can fill these roles
Show us the “young, bright, qualified and experienced Caymanians” to whom you refer please. Oh, perhaps you are referring to the Planning Authority? Nice mess going on there eh? Or maybe the National Housing Trust? Remember that one? Yeah, I think Mr Gilbert is doing a great job as Chair of the UCCI Board and the fact that he declined the NRA Chairmanship speaks volumes as to his mental faculties.
Young people by definition are usually not experienced. And when it comes to qualifications, many of those qualifications come with time and experience which young folks (myself included) don’t always have (yet).
Being too old for the job is a whole different issue.
Get the right folks in there and hold them accountable.
oh dear! Since you are so disrespectful to older persons you probably are not nor raised a young, bright qualified and experienced Caymanian. You comment is irrelevant.
That’s just wild.
Seems like this is the resigning year!
Did he get paid?
Smart move Gille get out Dodge City before the Sheriff comes to town or from the UK Don’t get mix up in the minister misleadings.
The all-round shit-show incompetence is quite extraordinary.
They sure jumped the gun on this one eh?
LOL. World class even.
This is Cayman; this is the way!
Billy Adams for chair.
From the sublime to the ridiculous
Who? 👀
Perhaps you meant to rope type Billy Adam…? (there’s no s in his last name).
The More You Know™💫
(the smarter you’ll be).
Yes where are the minutes from the board meetings. What ever happened to transparency?
Transparency? What’s that!!
They went dark, as typical in Cayman.
another glorious day for the civil service….zzzzzzzz
welcome to wonderland.
What the eff does this have to do with the civil service, duffus @ 1:25? Stop posting this boring crap comment all over the place and go get a job.
Thanks Franz. You have refused to require accountability for more than a decade. The shitshow is on you.
8:57 Obviously you have been living in a cave. Your lack of knowledge is alarming.
Get the help you need. NRA is an Authority!!! Not part of our civil service.
Leave our DG alone you obviously don’t know him.
1:25 you mean you have figured out that the NRA is not part of world class civil service. The word Authority should be a hint.
shut down these run away authorities and put them under the civil service.
wake up.
How is this a civil service problem? At least when you blame try to get it right. NRA is an authority.
1:25 NRA is not part of the civil service. The private sector board sytem and the Statutory Authorties have been a failure.
Who is the nomination committee?
The minister
These government Board Chairmen are all political appointees. There is no nominating committee.
Best news all day,
Let the clown show roll on
LOL.