OBA & PLP On Caricom Membership & More
“Beyond a general feel-good, this Government doesn’t seem to know why it is even joining Caricom,” Opposition Leader Jarion Richardson said, while the PLP said “instead of being distracted by the OBA’s fearmongering, the PLP is focused on building a fairer Bermuda for Bermudians.”
OBA Statement
Mr Richardson said, “This Government continues to force Bermudians to live in complete obedience with no room for listening and compromise.
“Joining an international body which incurs fees during a time of unprecedented cost-of-living increases, is to put the cart before the horse. Beyond a general feel-good, this Government doesn’t seem to know why it is even joining Caricom. All we know, is that it will cost money.
“The Government’s feel-good sales pitch conveniently neglects that the benefits it has mentioned we already receive from Caricom. By expanding our role, while major issues continue to fester in Bermuda, is evidence of a secret the public is not being let in on.
“Will Caricom give homes to our 800 homeless? No. Will Caricom fix our $125 million interest payment on $3.5 billion in debt? No. Will Caricom reduce the cost of food, housing or energy? No. Will Caricom reduce the violent crime snatching lives from our community? No. Will Caricom keep our desperate charities, like Teen Haven and Salvation Army, open? No. Will Caricom staff our beaches so that people stop drowning? No. Will Caricom clear up the cozy relationship between vendors and this Government? No.
“In fact, what, if anything, will Caricom do to improve life in Bermuda? At this point, no one knows the answer to that question – lest of all this Government. The Government should spend time on what’s happening in our borders, before it jets off to yet another adventure funded by the taxpayer.”
PLP Statement
In response, the PLP said, “There they go again. Instead of offering positive ideas to build a fairer Bermuda for us, the OBA is trying to scare and divide Bermudians with racist dog whistles.
“We’ve seen this show before. In 1998, the UBP tried to scare you into believing that Black Bermudians were not ready to govern and now they’re trying to scare you that the PLP would strengthen relations with countries that have Black majorities.
“The PLP is committed to ensuring that any decision regarding Caricom membership will not proceed without comprehensive consultation with Bermudians after further information is received from Caricom.
“Instead of being distracted by the OBA’s fearmongering, the PLP is focused on building a fairer Bermuda for Bermudians. We’ve done this by introducing the minimum wage, lowering taxes for 86% of Bermudians, increasing the childcare allowance, increasing pensions for seniors and investing record amounts in affordable housing.”
That didnt take long the plp havent even called the election and are playing the race card , they must be extremely worried …Its simple tell us what it will cost and tell us what we will get for those funds..tell us what the benefits are show us it is a path we should be taking. Guess we will have to wait or maybe we should go to Caricom for some answers
What is the race card?
PLP response was pathetic, very much like a schoolyard reaction, ….child like. Please can the PLP actually respond to all the points raised. We, the voters want answers!!!!!!
My thought too. The PLP need to put on big boy pants and behave like adults. It’s their typical approach to so many things. Throw out the least information possible then complain when there is a backlash and request for more information, especially the pros and cons.
this building a fairer Bermuda line we hear from the PLP isn’t just a Trump like soundbite. Bermuda has never seen poverty, desperation through people leaving their home, increased homelessness, crazy cost of living, can’t find places to rent, can’t find jobs, broken infrastructure (Causeway, govt buildings, roads, roadside overgrowth, botantical mess) and country debt like this in its history.
What they are doing isn’t making and hasn’t been making Bermuda fairer, it has crushed the people it claims to champion. The devil is in his name Beelzaburt, and his gang of disciples keep reaping their destruction of you.
What does a Trump soundbite have to do with anything in Bermuda? That would be like saying: “Ms Harris’s father, an emeritus professor of economics at Stanford University, acknowledged his family’s slave-owning past in a piece for a Jamaican newspaper in 2018. Curiously, relatives on his mother’s side are called Finegan. President Joe Biden’s Irish ancestors are also called Finegan (Finnegan).” – Kamala Harris is a descendant of an Irish slave owner in Jamaica, The Irish Times Jul 23 2024
Or is your analogy more similar to See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil?
Seems plp lie of building a fairer Bermuda is what they have repeated.
the reality is that they have done the complete opposite of what they claim to do. Bermuda has become less fairer
Perhaps kicking/forcing out the lower income Bermudian families to the UK, because they can no longer afford to survive here and continuing the mass scale immigration of cheap labour from asia is their interpretation of fairer.
Assuming what you say to be true, the statistics for Bermudian wealth will be improved.
If low-earning Bermudians leave and are replaced with low-earning foreigners, then the average wealth of resident Bermudians will increase
So based on your comments it sounds to me that many believe that a person today with the same surname is responsible for and should forever be vilified for the past actions of others that may, or may not, have been members of that same family. Are we responsible for the actions of others in our family? If yes, how many generations? If yes, family by birth only, or by marriage as well? Or are many simply looking to validate their own feelings of racism and / or hate?
When will we get rid of these numpties? It should absolutely go to a vote or referendum whether we join this. I have no doubt the majority dont want it. The PLP keeps ruining our country and people keep voting for them! Its like Trump! Time to stop these people!
The explanation is simple: Follow the money and all the free taxpayer trips to ink this deal.
No economic benefits are quantified.
“We’ve done this by introducing the minimum wage, lowering taxes for 86% of Bermudians, increasing the childcare allowance, increasing pensions for seniors and investing record amounts in affordable housing.”
And NONE OF THESE THINGS have helped any of us live better or more fairer lives lmfao. Let’s be for real!
I am not 100% sure they have increased the childcare allowance “net” or pensions but i do know they introduced minimum wage. This has done nothing. I highly doubt they have lowered taxes for 86% of Bermudians. What “taxes” do they mean? payroll tax? others? because they certainly have raised government fees across the board which negates any lowering of taxes…they have done nothing to reign in Belco…nothing to lower the cost of food and yes, they own some of that blame, its not just the grocers…overall, this government has been worse than pathetic. Harmful to us as a nation and they think this nonsense of joining a bunch of third world countries is going to be popular or help us? please go away
“What “taxes” do they mean? payroll tax?”
The Premier and Minister of Finance gave a speech in February 2023 (https://bernews.com/2023/02/annual-savings-in-payroll-tax-for-employees/) on how “86% of Bermuda’s workforce” would be better off with amendments to Payroll Tax, and then he INCREASED the employee portion of Payroll Tax from 0.15% to 0.5% on the first $48,000, he INCREASED the employee portion of Payroll Tax from 9.0% to 9.25% on the next $48,000, and he INCREASED the employee portion of Payroll Tax from 9.0% to 10.0% on the next $104,000.
Fair and better Bermuda? Better for the F&F, that is clear. Everyone else? Shambles.
The PLP has to blame everything on race. Other than that they have nothing.
Funny part is they only bang the scare mongering drum to keep the vote. They aren’t winning on transparency and track record.
REFERENDUM!!!