PRESS STATEMENT

HON. ALDEN McLAUGHLIN, M.B.E., J.P., M.L.A.

POLITICAL LEADER OF THE PPM

LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION

Wednesday, 11^th December, 2012

ARREST OF PREMIER BUSH

I was officially advised this morning of the arrest of the Premier, Mr. McKeeva Bush, by the Royal Cayman Islands Police on suspicion of:

Theft in connection with financial irregularities relating to the misuse of a government credit card;

Breach of Trust, Abuse of Office and Conflict of Interest, contrary to Sections 13, 19 and 17 of the Anti-Corruption Law 2008, respectively in connection with the alleged importation of explosive substances without valid permits on or before February 2012.

I am confident that the law will take its course and we must give the authorities the opportunity to complete their work unimpeded. This is indeed a period of uncertainty for our country but we must remain calm and trust in the system and the Rule of Law.  It is designed to deal with and ultimately resolve matters such as this.

The arrest of the Premier is a hugely damaging body blow to the reputation of these islands and to confidence in our government.  It will do immense harm to our credibility as an international business centre and a place to work and do business.

The social and economic interests of these Islands depend on Mr. Bush’s colleagues in the Cabinet and on the Government Backbench acting swiftly and resolutely in this matter to return normalcy to the operations of Government and to prevent the further hemorrhaging of the country’s image and reputation.

Accepted international best practice and the conventions of the Westminster system of government provide clear guidance as to the course of action that ought now to be followed by Mr. Bush and his Cabinet and supporting backbench MLAs.

We will continue to closely monitor this grave situation over the course of the next 24 hours and will issue another statement as and when circumstances require.