15,000 gallons of untreated sewage has been discharging onto the ground each day according to the Water Authority for over a year. Government issued a cheque for $40,000 to the Water Authority-Cayman in October 2011 for the emergency repair of failing wastewater systems at Randyke Gardens, George Town. This work, however was delayed for months because of reasons that included the strata’s non-payment of electric bills and inability to sign a maintenance contract with a service provider.

The matter was first reported to the Authority in January 2011.

According to Tom van Zanten, the Water Authority’s Deputy Director, the strata is now finally in compliance with the necessary conditions as of 27 February, and the wastewater system should be operational by the end of this month.

Well I hope so. However, Mr Zanten did add a proviso to his statement, “barring unforeseen circumstances”.

An inspection of the site on 3 February, determining the situation was unchanged since 12 December: “Raw sewage continues to be discharged onto the ground and into adjacent properties.”

On 4 November, Deputy Premier Juliana O’Connor-Connolly, along with officials from the authority and government, met with strata Chairman Mitchell Bodden. At the meeting, it was determined that the complex had issues relating to wastewater, planning violations and environmental health.

The minutes reported: “It was determined that the strata owed government substantial fees as they had not repaid any part of the $440,000 government loan for the new wastewater treatment system that was installed in 2007. The strata also owes substantial garbage fees (nearly $400,000) to the Department of Environmental Health,”

How was this situation allowed to go on for so long by successive governments?

The owners of the apartments at Randyke fill them with the lower paid workers and collect the rents without feeling the need to repay government loans, pay fees or repair anything that has broken. Because there are so many tenants living there to close the site down would be political suicide.

Then we get the so called “wealthy” developers who also owe government huge amounts of money and get away without paying for years until it is “wiped off the books.”

And who pays for all this in the end. Why, the so called middleclass of course.

And finally……

I must applaud Nick Watson of CNS for his Viewpoint entitled “Equity – no exceptions”

He makes the absolute truthful point that the idea put forward by the PPM of having two voting systems in one country is absurd. He says, “If it is wrong for the people of George Town, West Bay and Bodden Town to have more say in the outcome of the elections by having more than one vote in the general elections, then it is equally wrong for the people of Cayman Brac and Little Cayman to have two votes, even more so if the system changed so that the rest of the electorate has only one.

“The opposition, including the PPM Sister Islands representative, must decide whether they believe in one man, one vote (OMOV) or not. To campaign for a more democratic system but then water it down with an exception for one district weakens their whole argument – and potentially damages the wider campaign for a more democratic system. It’s either a principle they believe in or it isn’t.”

What on earth was PPM leader, Alden McLaughlin, thinking when he came up with the idea for ‘one country, two systems’. I thought this stupidity that first came up at public meetings during the discussion period for the new constitution during the PPM administration had been buried, but I am wrong.

As Nick says, “There is no more reason for the multi-vote system in the Sister Islands than there is in any other district and the same arguments against it apply.”

If it’s not a good idea in Cayman Brac, as the PPM leader has said, it’s not a good idea on Grand Cayman. Yes, I can hear the premier blasting that message out from every corner of this country. And then how can you argue against it?

Be strong Alden and LEAD!!!!!!!