Trim some jobs here!

October 9, 2010

Dear Sir,

This is the perfect time for the Civil Service to begin trimming the workforce. Those persons in Immigration and Works and Engineering, responsible for hiring this French National, should be the first to get the pink slip. I could hardly believe the article in the paper stating that this man was not able to speak English. No doubt he will be working at one of our leading restaurants, offering French service, in the not too distant future.

BILL NEARON

Pembroke

Bad concert seating

October 4, 2010

Dear Sir,

I have never written a letter to the Editor but I felt for the first time in my life it was warranted. My wife and I are huge Toni Braxton fans and the moment we heard that she was coming to Bermuda we rushed to get front row seats.

We were so ecstatic when we were able to get front row tickets and we were pumped for the weekend. When we arrived at the venue, our excitement turned into complete and utter disbelief as the usher escorted us to the front – directly behind a video screen and speakers. Initially we thought it was a joke because from our vantage point, we could not see the stage or even the screen without hurting your neck. When asked about the ridiculous seating, they only apologised and said that it's a sold out venue and we couldn't move.

I also noticed that we were sitting right next to the Honorable Minister Neletha Butterfield who also couldn't believe where she was sitting. As more and more people arrived in the same section we were in, they all had the same reaction we had. After all the complaining about the seating, they gave us an alternative of sitting in the middle, towards the back where you can see the stage better.

So basically we paid VIP price for general admittance seating. Needless to say we were not impressed. It totally ruined what was supposed to be our biggest night of the year. It wasn't a total loss for we were able to see Toni and the other artists perform but we couldn't enjoy it like we had hoped because of someone's poor decision with the seating arrangements.

In the future for anyone who has big events like the Bermuda Music Festival, please bear in mind the seating arrangements before throwing down X amount of chairs.

HUGE TONI BRAXTON FANS

City of Hamilton

Corn meal beats ants

October 8, 2010

Dear Sir,

As an amateur bee keeper from way back, I was very interested in the article concerning the way that ants were invading bee hives.

So much so that the bees were being driven out of their own hive.

Similar ants were giving me such a problem, so I tried an old remedy that I learned over the internet.

I went to a grocery store and bought a cheap box of corn meal, and spread it on all the horizontal surfaces that the ants were running along. Lo and behold after three days, that was the end of the ants.

Apparently ants cannot digest corn meal, but they carry it back "home" and all the ants in the nest, probably including the queeen all pass away from eating it.

It sounds too good to be true, but it certainly worked for me.

Sincerely,

TONY BUCKLEY

Trust has corroded

October 11, 2010

Dear Sir,

One of your most regular and consistent correspondents in these pages (from a swimming stroke area of Bermuda) posed a very pertinent question in her latest missive of October 6, namely, how has Bermuda come to a situation whereby the Premier of Bermuda is elected by a few individuals of one political party, with regard to the forthcoming election of a new PLP leader, rather than by the electorate at large (ie., the people of Bermuda)?

In one sense the answer to that question is quite easy: first, Bermuda has had a Westminster style parliamentary government since the earliest years of its settlement (August 1, 1620, to be precise), and the current situation of how a Premier is established arises from the evolution of that system, and including, secondly, from the emergence of political parties in Bermuda, first by the PLP (in 1963), then by the UBP (in 1964), and subsequently by other parties (most recently by the BDA in 2009).

The Premier of Bermuda is thereby established, indirectly, by the electorate via a majority of the people's representatives in government. The most important link between the electorate and the government is the people's trust in their representatives to appoint a leader who will conduct the affairs of government in the best interests of the electorate at large rather than in the interests of the leader's party (or, indeed, in their own interests). The real answer to your correspondent's question is that the trust between the people of Bermuda and their elected representatives in Government has been corroded by the current government (and Premier), to the extent that there is now a lamentable mistrust of how the leader of Bermuda is appointed according to party political rather than truly inclusive leadership criteria.

The only way to obtain a Premier of Bermuda as the universal choice of the electorate to represent all the people of Bermuda is by the election of an individual who is not aligned to any political party and who obtains the majority of the votes of the electorate – period. There is no reason why this might not be a taxi driver or construction worker or lawyer or any person who, independent of any political affiliation, puts themselves up for election by the people.

The fly in that particular ointment is that it would need an amendment to the Bermuda Constitution since, according to the Constitution, the Governor "acting in his discretion, shall appoint as the Premier the member of the House of Assembly (i.e. an existing elected representative of the Legislature) who appears to him best able to command the confidence of a majority of the members of that House". (Bermuda Constitution – Chapter IV – The Executive – Appointment of Premier and other Ministers – Section 58 (1)) By convention, therefore, the Governor appoints the leader of the political party that obtains the majority of seats in a general election. Whilst convention is no grounds for absolute authority (and the Bermuda Constitution makes no reference to political parties per se except to cite an "Opposition", implying the existence of different parties), radical reform of the Parliamentary system is unlikely to occur any time soon in such a conservative constituency as Bermuda.

(There are, of course, other ways of electing the leader of a country. The United States presidential system, for example, is an ostensibly more direct form of elective government, although that system is also channelled selectively, albeit representatively, at a distance, through the sieve of the electoral college. The presidential system is an alternative to the Westminster parliamentary system, but it does not necessarily result in a higher quality of leadership: there have been ineffective or just plain bad presidents throughout the history of the United States, just as there have been good, bad or indifferent Prime Ministers in the United Kingdom.)

So we come back to the status quo – and to the original question of the trust of the people in their Parliamentary representatives to elect a leader of the country who will not only "command the confidence of a majority of the members of that House (of Assembly)" but the respect and trust of the people of Bermuda at large. The forthcoming election of a new PLP leader is therefore not simply a party political matter. It implies a larger question of re-establishing the trust and confidence of the people of Bermuda in their government in general. This will be vested in the governing party's moral and constitutional responsibility to elect a leader of the Bermuda community in particular on behalf of all the people of Bermuda rather than on the more parochial grounds of party political criteria. That balance of judgement is the sword of Damocles now hanging over their heads, not so much for the influence it might have on the next General Election in 2012 but in the judgment of the people of Bermuda about their confidence in the governance of Bermuda.

GRAHAM FAIELLA

London, UK

Those leadership choices

October 11, 2010

Dear Sir

In reading both Eva Hodgson's letter to the Editor published on October 9, and your editorial published on October 8, there is the realisation that so much has changed regarding the image and goodwill once held in abundance by the PLP at the start of their term in government. The tide of public sentiment has soured and that could be because the PLP has spent as much political capital on issues for the PLP as well as the public outcry regarding the public deficit of $1 billion.

With a new leader about to emerge, Ms Cox has always been the favourite to become that leader, but I would like to take this opportunity to voice my admiration and respect to the two male candidates who have conducted campaigns that have been both open and transparent – finally – there is consideration by the PLP regarding the impact of negative and covert campaigns on the public psyche, as there are no Machiavellian operations (that we know of) being played out to obtain this treasured position.

Although I am not a convert, Mr. Butler's campaign shows integrity as a campaign founded on a social agenda that is a very hard sell in Bermuda. Why? Because we deny the fact that there is homelessness and poverty and, to vividly prove that point, for the last 12 years the PLP government have done nothing to address homelessness and poverty. Mr. Butler knows something that most people take for granted – poor people vote – and, he will be positively remembered by them long after this campaign has ended. But if the PLP does not address poverty, who will? The UBP addressed it in the sincere believe that by creating economic prosperity jobs and social stability would follow, and they did create economic prosperity, but in reality prosperity did not eliminate poverty, but rather accelerated and masked it.

Mr. Lister has shown integrity with one very important statement that he made recently. If elected by the PLP delegates to become the next leader he would have his finance minister make real changes in the government budget and how Bermuda conducts its business. This is a very significant statement because Mr. Lister is telling us that he will not attempt to be both the premier and finance minister, but will appoint a finance minister. Why is this significant? Because nowhere in the western world is there a dual finance minister and leader of the country. The British Chancellor of the Exchequer is not the Prime Minister, they are two separate and distinct posts held by two different individuals (when Gordon Brown became the Labour Prime Minister he gave up the post as the Chancellor). Now under a Conservative government, David Cameron and George Osbourne are Prime Minister and Chancellor respectively. Moreover the US treasury secretary and the president of the USA are held by two different men.

Just because the UBP set the precedent with Sir David Gibbons does not mean that the PLP should follow step. Look at our Constitution, a Premier/Finance Minister will conduct his/her own checks and balances because who will challenge the Premier/Finance Minister if s/he went off course? The silent and acquiescent Cabinet? The noble yet compliant backbenchers? The critical but minority UBP? The public outcry after the fact?

The country should not have to rely upon one person to make the right decisions 100 percent of the time whilst wearing two hats because when that person is chosen s/he should hold one post – the Premiership. If that person amasses the type of power that their predecessor did, as holding both posts will give her/him unbridled power, when popularity dips, and it will, the backlash could be unparalleled.

And, I am very uncomfortable with the consolidation of power into the hands of one person. Ms Cox, I would rather tell you this now than wait until something went terribly wrong (which could be out of your control and that you bear no responsible for) than to remain silent. Having too much power due to the consolidation of the two posts, both real and perceived power, is not politically healthy for the country, it stifles honest and constructive dialogue, especially from those who want something from you – and there are a lot of people who will want something from you!

VALIRIE MARCIA AKINSTALL

London, UK

Imagine gives thanks

October 8, 2010

Dear Sir,

I wish to express the appreciation of Imagine Bermuda for the support of those who were involved in the Roll-Out of the FABRIC and the launch of the United Nations International Year of Youth at City Hall on Thursday, October 7, 2010.

First let me thank Spanish Town, one of the Island's premier production companies who provided the sound system gratis. Of course we also have to thank the Corporation of Hamilton for their attention to detail for their free service to the event.

Of course, central to the whole event was the involvement of the schools. Berkeley Institute, Bermuda High School for Girls, Bermuda Institute, CedarBridge, Dellwood Middle, Mount St. Agnes, Saltus, Victor Scott Primary and Warwick Academy, all played some part in the event. And for this we are greatly appreciative, as the youth are the focus.

In the spirit of the UN urging that Year provide opportunities for Youth to dialogue across the generations, we appreciate the fact that a number of our elders attended; including Dr. Norma Astwood – former teacher/psychologist, Clevelyn Crichlow – educator, Dr. Eva Hodgson – teacher/author; Sister Judith Rollo – educator and Clarence Smith – former president of the BTFA.

You will be aware that the United Nations is looking to have civil society collaborate with the Government sector in this initiative. We are thankful that Minister Michael Scott was able to attend on behalf of the Acting Premier for this occasion.

Again thanks for the support.

GLENN FUBLER

Imagine Bermuda