Minister’s alleged electioneering raises eyebrows at Ag Show
(CNS): CNS readers told us they had seen civil servants handing out promotional flyers that appeared to be electioneering on behalf of Agriculture Minister Jay Ebanks at the popular annual Agriculture Show on Wednesday. However, Deputy Governor Franz Manderson said the flyer, which was available at the Department of Agriculture tent, was setting out the ministry’s achievements and other information promoting poultry standards and food security.
“I am not aware of civil servants actively handing out the flyers,” Manderson told us when we raised our readers’ queries. “The flyer, in addition to setting out the ministry achievements, also promotes poultry standards and food security. I do not believe any breach of policy has taken place. However, I will review the matter.”
Manderson explained that how public servants conduct their work during the period between the start of the election campaign and the election of a new government is constantly under review to ensure that the civil service remains neutral while the campaign is underway but that the work of government continues. “We are constantly reviewing our policies governing this area,” he added.
Elections Supervisor Wesley Howell noted that the deputy governor’s office has issued guidance to the civil service regarding appropriate communication from departments and ministries during “the period of political sensitivity”.
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Category: Election News
Change writes: Every constituency has the same issue when their MP becomes a minister. It is not that they stop caring about their area, but Cabinet members have no choice but to tackle issues at national level, and that takes budget, meetings, reports, travel, conference calls, sitting with lawyers to streamline bills and laws — all […]
Not for the life of me I can find the benefit for a candidate in North Side to campaign at the agriculture show. Less than 20% of the eleigble voters in constituency would have attended that event attending. Makes no sense. He would have been better walking around to 50 households.
The flyer is retarded. Ticking boxes that proves nothing.
Infrastructure & Planning – Millions spent on resurfacing roads that didn’t need it
Economic Growth & Development – More like under his watch over development for luxury condos.
Housing & Economic Empowerment – PPM bought the land all he had to do was build the houses and he changed the designs so they are more expensive and not yet finished.
Transport & Mobility – Lost on this one cause he nothing about transportation
Agriculture & Sustainability – He went on road trips but nothing has been done for food security or sustainability
Innovation & Smart Development – Huh??? What???
CNS something wrong with your election page. Not all posts visible from mobile devices. Also under an articles title, the comment count is higher than when the article opens. Something wrong
CNS: Try refreshing the page. I know this is a pain but it seems to fix the problem.
Saw Mr. Dan at the Cayman Brac AG show. He didn’t appear to be actively campaigning, although he was hovering near the ticket booth. No problem. I walked by and wasn’t engaged. I have no problem with him, even like him, except he’s not a Bracker.
No such thing as Bracker (legally). They are also Caymanians. Cayman Brac is not separate from the Cayman Islands.
Those civil servants weren’t giving them out by choice….they were instructed to….by Jay! That is abuse of position!
The question is not whether civil servants were in the wrong….Jay was 1000000% in the wrong!!!
Franz, as usual, is focused on the wrong thing with his “world class civil service”. They are an unprotected group….can’t voice their own opinions in protests/politics but can’t refuse to do others bidding due to potential retaliation.
For Howell to be so dismissive, shows he’s not interested in doing his job. That was a flagrant violation!
Nothing he could do would make me vote for him
Franz Manderson would excuse it if it were wrong anyway!
He accommodates, excuses and facilitates Eric Bush.
Enough said.
The show is put on by the Agriculture Society and is not a core government function. Thus it is an unqualified opinion that any civil servant who was ‘promoting’ the minister and ministry was by extension, conducting electioneering.
Just like this Ministers recent escapade to the Miami Boat show with many supporters. SHAMEFUL
The question isn’t whether the civil servants were electioneering. Was no choice for them.
Why was Jay allowed to TELL people they had to hand these flyers out. That is electioneering on Jay’s part! I hope everybody in these comments that realizes JAY WAS AT FAULT will email the elections office to complain. How Franz Manderson and Wesley Howell so blind?
can you clarify what you mean by ‘unqualified opinion’? I might be a loner but I’m not sure if that’s the right term and I’m not clear if you think this was ok or not. Kindly explain.
Franz not see nuttin.
All Jay has done is pave north side roads. He had an important ministry and did nothing.
1. Development plan still not done
2. Affordable Housing policy not done
3. Transportation plan. Nothing happening
4. Undersea cable. No progress
He did nothing.
He did add to the national debt that our children and grandchildren will have to pay off – what idiot votes to saddle their children and grandchildren with debt in exchange of a parking lot that is empty 99.9% of the time?
But will be voted back in without question. Shameful
Nailed it!
He paved Northside roads. He gets elected by a handful of Northsiders. You think the failure to progress your list will make any difference in the Northside ballot box? We have an electroal system that actively encourages ministers to pander to local community interests and to hell with the wider country issues. You want pols to pay attention to the wider issues, return to a national vote.
Who created the flyer? Surely not the civil servants.! Jay is in the wrong here. Abuse of power. and Wesley missed that point – Unless he really thinks the civil servants prepared this flyer for Jay?
That was my exact thought!
There is no enforcement of most of our laws. Those in power will do as they wish and we can’t stop them. The end.
Kenneth’s billboards being an example..!
If you are uneducated and lack integrity, then you will not understand the basic norms of principled behavior.
Kenneth, Mac, Seymour, Saunders fall into that category.
That was electioneering! Shameful. A couple of months ago he had 2 women driving around masquerading as his office workers getting personal data from people to update their records.
They also asked about who they supported. A lot of innocent folks didn’t know they gave up personal data to non government workers. Shameful!
It is being rumored that Jay is boasting that he will be the next “king maker”. Shameful!
Jay if you are so confident you will win why are you going to such lengths?
Last November the OAG spoke at length in the report of the fact that they can’t produce audited financial statements for your entire portfolio since 2022. The people will hear the truth and hopefully before April 30th.
They can but won’t as it will reveal a lot of misgivings and wrongs by this minister and his crony CO.
Whaaaa? The minute they asked who I was supporting shit would have been said to them plus a report turned in.