PAC to dump Mac, Ezzard to take chair
MLAs Roy McTaggart and Ezzard Miller
(CNS): The government will be voting Opposition Leader McKeeva Bush off the Public Accounts Committee in the Legislative Assembly next week, as the independent member for North Side has agreed to take over the chairmanship from Roy McTaggart, who will remain as a member. Ezzard Miller told CNS that he had agreed to take over the committee because of recent events and the issue of conflict that has emerged.
“I believe we need to improve the functioning of the PAC as certain members have been doing things that contravene the committee’s standing orders,” he said.
Bush had caused concern for the current chair, Roy McTaggart, who asked him to resign in the wake of derogatory public comments he made about the auditor general. The opposition leader refused, however, and went on to attack the government auditor and made further public statements relating to reports which had not been reviewed by the committee. A number of reports that directly involve and criticize Bush are also still on the agenda for PAC, which the premier’s office said were impossible for him to consider with objectivity.
McTaggart has resigned from the chairman’s post because the auditor general will soon begin producing reports that deal more directly with the current administration and, given his supporting role as ministry counsellor in the finance ministry, he too would be conflicted.
The North Side MLA refused the post of PAC chair following the 2013 election because Bush had been appointed and he believed at the time that this would cause significant conflict. However, the planned removal of Bush has paved the way for Miller to return to the PAC hot seat.
Miller said one his main priorities would be to address government’s continued failure to formally respond to the PAC reports, which are tabled in the Legislative Assembly following its review of the reports by the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) and the public hearings of the committee.
“The government has not responded, as it is required to do in law, to a single report since at least 2009. But it is an important part of completing the process and paves the way for a debate on the issues raised and for government to tell the parliament and the public what it intends to do or not do regarding the recommendations,” he said.
Well aware that the PAC needs to consider some extremely contentious reports from the OAG, including the controversial Nation Building Fund report, an audit of government assistance programmes and a review of land acquisition and management, Miller said he would be calling a meeting in the immediate wake of his appointment, if it is supported by members, to set a timetable.
Miller will also be seeking support to remove the remaining secrecy surrounding the committee.
“I will be asking government to suspend the standing orders that provide for closed-door meetings for the remaining life of this committee so that every meeting of PAC will be public,” he said. “I believe that closed-door meetings have facilitated some dysfunction on the committee, which more transparency can prevent.”
CNS contacted Bush for a response to the motion, which is expected to be an early item on government’s agenda when the parliament sits again next week, and we are waiting a response.
Category: Government oversight, Politics
MacDump – Laird of Mount Trashmore
Ezzard like many want power but he will never be premier of the cayman islands.
Ezzard’s problem tend to be that he can’t see the wood for the trees and he will get the Committee bogged down in procedural complaints rather than focusing on the substantive issues.
One of his many problems.
Hard for me to see why going for process over substance can be considered a “problem”. We need more of that, not less.
Substance over process worked well for McKeeva.
Smart move by Roy. The PAC will never effectively discharge it obligations. Far better for Ezzard to take the fall.
How did Mc end up on the PAC anyway? Just read the Hansard of 29 May 2013:
The Premier, Hon. Alden McLaughlin, Jr.:
Madam Speaker, I beg to nominate the following as members of the Public Accounts Committee:
• Fourth Elected Member for Bodden Town
• Sixth Elected Member for George Town
• First Elected Member for West Bay and Leader of the Opposition
• First Elected Member for Bodden Town
The brilliant one – trying to keep Arden and Ezzard out of any worthwhile role chose Mc instead!
Actually, I have it on good money that at the time Ezzard refused to participate and Arden followed suit. So in all fairness to Alden, it was a choice between Mac, Eugene or Bernie.
And it’s so ironic how he got there:
LA Hansard, 29 May 2013
The Premier, Hon. Alden McLaughlin, Jr.:
Madam Speaker, I beg to nominate the following as members of the Public Accounts Committee:
• Fourth Elected Member for Bodden Town
• Sixth Elected Member for George Town
• First Elected Member for West Bay and Leader of the Opposition
• First Elected Member for Bodden Town
Yes, and it wasn’t that Alden was suddenly extending an olive branch to McKeeva. It was his determination that Arden and Ezzard should not to have any significant role because Arden had ‘left’ him and some thought that Ezzard should be Speaker.
Poor mac. That stinking dump is no place even for the WORST of Premiers.
Ĺook guys. The dump is ALREADY a huge eyesore. Can’t we just send him to China. Or Las Wegas?
Holy sh*t. Man. Now we REALLY need to do something about the dump.
Dump mac? Dump mac? Dump unna dam a**. If unna tink mack won sue unna dam a** unna jes try me unna hear.
Poor Mac will be so lonely…
He will have less power now than the dead battery that I just took out of my car…
Mac y ga lawn bihawe y self like a goof fif grade stoodent man.
” Dump Mac “. Beautiful words under any circumstances.
Quote: “The government has not responded, as it is required to do in law, to a single report since at least 2009.” Hard to believe, ain’t it!
Quote: “Miller will also be seeking support to remove the remaining secrecy surrounding the committee.” Good luck with that one, Mr. Miller!
This from Miller -Mr Transparency- who forced his civil servants to tell lies in public meetings about his proposed Hortor Hospital in the early nineties or else….. Some of us will never forget that.
McKeeva Bush is now like a ‘lame old duck’ that no longer has any swagger nor can water run off it’s feathers. Capt Eugene is no different and is probably worse.
Can’t wait for OMOV to come to West Bay so we can elect and hopefully receive some good representation in our lost and broken down district.
Captain Who?
He is silent one. Hansard records his mumbles. CI$250,000 cost to the public per year to mumble, sleep and agree with Mac.
Fishing takes precedence over his MLA duties, always has, always will. It’s strange how an MLA goes against the grain of what the DOE is saying with regards to expanding our Marine Parks (the only thing I have heard him say in his last 8yrs in Govt.), oh wait, its not, they are proceeding with the cruise pier…….
Kind of like going from the sublime to the ridiculous then?
No, not even close, but I’m glad you finally found a place to use that expression.
When the squirrel wants to eat for winter he needs to know where his nuts are.
Bunch of ya’ll need to try and DO something for a change! Where is the action? Everything is committees this and meetings that and consulting this one and that one; in the end no further ahead than where we started!!!!!
Aww c”mon, dumping mac is a HUGE step in the right direction. Oh, are they finally going to dump that cap’t guy along with him?