The One Bermuda Alliance is the party of 'No'

FRIDAY, MARCH 2: By their words and by their actions the OBA appears to believe that if they cannot run Bermuda, they will have to destroy Bermuda.

Whether it’s committing to protecting jobs and opportunities for Bermudians first or protecting the primary pillar of our economy the OBA is there to say ‘NO’ to anything and everything offering no alternative, no vision and no solutions. They seem to be more interested in political power than powering our economy out of this recession. The fact that no one on their team has been in a position in governance in a number of years might account for much of what we’ve recently heard from them and their allies.

Significant initiatives have been proposed to manage government expenditures and keep Bermuda a competitive, international jurisdiction, but all have been met with scepticism and outright rejection by the Opposition.

The OBA has truly become a group that is willing to scuttle the PLP government’s well-established reputation as responsible managers of Bermuda for the sake of winning the next election to the detriment of Bermuda and our people. The recent proposals shared with trade unions to assist with lowering government expenditure, which included parliamentary salary reductions, were at first received in a favourable manner by the Opposition.

Later, they flip-flopped, saying ‘NO’ to the proposals and criticizing the effort. I stick to my belief that they felt blindsided by the proposals, and hoped to use them against the PLP government during the Budget debate. Since the Opposition’s opportunity was lost, they pouted like spoiled children who had their candy taken away. 

Next, we heard about the OBA rejecting PLP government initiatives to get Bermudians back to work with job fairs and tougher work permit policies, along with collaborative efforts with industry. The question has to be asked: Is the Opposition serious? If they are, their resistance suggests a total loss of sanity and perspective. Is it not important that every possible step be taken to get those people who have been affected by the economic slowdown back to work?

Is it not important for the government to cooperate with unions and others to limit government expenditure and increase unity? I think most Bermudians would agree that these measures, along with the other steps that have been taken and will be taken, can significantly improve the situation of our country. To add insult to injury, the next thing we heard was further grandstanding by the Opposition’s Finance spokesman siding with the Cayman Islands in its efforts to strip Bermuda of business. Perhaps Mr. Richards has taken on a new role as the Honorary Consul for the Caymans in Bermuda. 

The Premier made a very valid point recently: “… How a patriot for Bermuda could ever stand in front of an audience and side with the leader of a competitor jurisdiction against his own, defies belief…”. 

I believe the Opposition spokesman, Mr. Richards, is a patriot, but perhaps he’s simply misguided.  His fantasy is that taking a position so detrimental to the interest of his own country is a vote grabber. This is clearly absurd. 

I do recall the Opposition’s Finance spokesman taking similarly bizarre positions in the Senate regarding Bermuda’s adherence to IMF recommendations. He expressed scepticism about blindly and slavishly following the pronouncements of supranational regulators. Ironically, once in the House of Assembly, he criticized the PLP Government for not meeting some of those very same benchmarks and recommendations.

Here we are with an Opposition that says ‘NO’ to a Bermuda that adheres to international financial best practice; ‘NO’ to job fairs and strong work-permit policies that help Bermudians; and ‘NO’ to joint sacrifice on public expenditure.

What the OBA appear to have said ‘yes’ to is displacing qualified Bermudians at the height of a recession, ‘yes’ to a Bermuda where Bermudians come second in jobs, opportunity and housing. If the Opposition is clearly the party of ‘NO’ on so many issues, then voters need to ask: does the Opposition actually stand for anything that benefits Bermuda?

Walter H. Roban is PLP MP for Pembroke East.