I woke up this week wondering what to write about. At this point in history, most people will be overloaded with information about Covid-19, so not much sense writing about that topic.

Simultaneously, most are wary about political bickering between organisations, so no joy writing in that vein, either.

What’s a columnist to do?

So, today I would like to take a moment to thank Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, the One Bermuda Alliance, for being extremely co-operative with the Government over the duration of the pandemic, lockdown and slow reopening of the economy.

On Friday during our virtual Parliament, Bermuda heard MP Ben Smith give a succinct and detailed account of the work that the Emergency Measures Organisation has been doing to bring our island through the needed phases.

He painstakingly explained how each sector that was to be considered for opening was analysed and given clear directives.

Anyone listening could have easily believed that Ben was the minister himself, as he had such a depth of knowledge of the subject matters.

The irony is that he is not the Minister of National Security, but, as an Opposition MP he is the shadow for Wayne Caines.

A few weeks ago, it was decided at Cabinet level that Ben would be invited to sit in on certain meetings to allow the Opposition to have a broad view and input on what was going on with regard to efficient crisis management.

This has obviously proved to be highly successful on many levels.

What this highlights is that despite the traditional parliamentary cut-and-thrust, MPs from both sides generally have a large level of respect for each other’s abilities and work. Even in disagreements, our different perspectives, life experiences, community contacts and community reach have served to put our island on a better footing than we see elsewhere in the world.

One has only to look at the United States to see the wide divide in the handling of this crisis. The Democrats want to ensure safety for the masses and to extend aid to all affected, while the Republicans primarily focus on rushing to reopen the economy despite the pandemic not having reached its peak.

A similar story is playing out in Britain with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his aides fumbling from one public-relations disaster to the next.

If one was to take a snap shot of the political climates around the world, it would be clear to see that ours would be comparatively Utopian.

Now, don’t get me wrong. The Opposition has not gone soft and failed to hold the Government to account.

In Parliament, it asks the needed questions about emergency regulations, extra spending and economic projections.

Anything less than that would be a dereliction of their duties.

So, while we will always have political partisanship in our island home, we have proven that we can cast aside those differences in party colours for the greater good of our people.

For this, every Bermudian should be both proud and grateful.

To Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, I say thanks for giving me something to write about.

Happy Bermuda Day to everyone. See you next year at the parade.

• Christopher Famous is the government MP for Devonshire East (Constituency 11). You can reach him on WhatsApp at 599-0901 or e-mail carib_pro@yahoo.com