January 14th, 2014

Dear Sir,

It appears that the PLP has its strategy mapped out now.

After all the gnashing of teeth by them in 2013, they have now decided they want to stress that they are a labour party.

I refer in particular to the top opinion letter by Diallo Rabain in the Monday January, 6th, edition and it appears to me that the two aspects of the opinion are that they are;

1. The true labour party

2. That the OBA are trying to assume that mantle

The result according to the Senator is that it is “a slap in the face of democracy” which was how the opinion was headlined.

I completely disagree with the two premises.

Firstly a labour party is supposed to look after the interests of labouring people, and the pensioners who used to labour, and now depend on a pension.

Secondly a labour party is, in my opinion, supposed to act as the trustee of the funds paid to government by the labouring public so that the labouring people have some security.

Surely that is correct?

So did the PLP behave like a labour party according to my definition; maybe my definition is wrong, and that once the funds have been paid in the government of the day they can do as they like with them.

Particularly irksome are the statements in the press from time to time like “Government gave $xxx to such an organisation”.

Much better that the paper reports it as: “Government, as trustee of the public purse gave, $xxxx to Mr Z for faith-based tourism, or $14 million of the taxpayers money to the sport of Y.”

Secondly about the OBA assuming the mantle of the protector of labour and their funds — somebody has to and the OBA cannot be any worse.

Some of us socialists had reasonably high hopes in 1998 that we would have a labour government; maybe it started off like that with Lois and Eugene Cox still alive, but it quickly turned into a free for all for our gang only.

No point in again listing the numerous secret deals, non-tendered and overrunning contracts, numerous consultancy fees for cronies, etc.

The people already know that; that is why the Senator’s party was kicked out by the workers.

Anyone who says Bermuda being brought down to one knee with the other knee on its way down was a product of the recession in the USA (which has now recovered) is at best, misled.

I do hope that Mark Bean can get rid of the self-seeking crowd that is left over from the cabinets of Brown, and get some people in there who actually believe that they, when in power, will be the guardians of the public purse, and use the same as trustees for the benefit of Bermuda.

In other words put the middle word of PLP back into the name.

Sincerely

Joe Wakefield