This is the season of a “new beginning” and “working together” so I had better not put a “spanner into the works” and ask the question “how much did the “antics” of the UDP government actually cost us?”

For ‘antics’ one could politely substitute the word ‘mismanagement’, for ‘UDP government’ substitute ‘ex-premier McKeeva Bush’ and for ‘us’ I do actually mean US as we have to pay for it.

However, I already have asked the question and the answer is probably zero, because you see it wasn’t, according to the Bush camp their fault. The costs were caused by a combination of the previous Progressives’ (PPM) government, the previous Governor Duncan Taylor, the dastardly Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) in London, and the last minority government.

I am surprised that North Side Independent Minister Ezzard Miller, who is very thorough when it comes to facts and figures involving the public purse and is able to get maximum favourable publicity from it, has been silent on it.

Everyone is silent on it.

The revelation only on Friday (10) that the public purse has lost $6.2M in lost duty from Ryan from his non-payment of monies from his building of the Ritz-Carlton due to an arrangement he made with the Bush UDP government resulted in only a whimper from Finance Minister Marco Archer.

Speaking to CNS he “criticized the random and inconsistent waivers that had been given by the previous government on duty and other financial obligations. Having inherited this problem, he said that the Ritz deal does not appear to have changed anything for government, which will remain out of pocket. The minister said that there does not seem to have been any legal opinion sought by the previous government over the issue relating to any possible recourse it may have”.

Bush’s opinion, without any legal foundation whatsoever, but his words are enough for his supporters to believe, is “the new owners, were and are responsible for the debt.” Bush confirmed to CNS this week that his position on the issue had not changed and said that Five Mile Capital [new owners of the Ritz] and their related companies “should pay”.

It doesn’t come as any surprise that Bush doesn’t consider Mr Ryan is the man who should pay up. Ryan has benefited from the deal he has struck with Five Mile and the losers are us. Bush accepts no blame whatsoever that he had made an arrangement with Ryan that the duty monies owed would be paid as part of other projects that Ryan was going to do.  No contingencies were placed in the agreement in case Ryan didn’t actually do them. Ryan didn’t do any of these other projects and I haven’t heard he will. And if he does will the $6.2M be recoverable from them? I already know the answer.

Just like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat Bush concludes it is the new owners who must pay, he bows and we all clap.

No one is accountable. $6.2M is lost and is added to all the other UDP ‘antics’ that have cost us dearly but actually  haven’t cost us anything at all. In fact we don’t even have a total of how much and do we really want to know? It will only spoil the party.

It’s a new beginning. We are all working together. What’s a few million dollars here and there? Payouts as finding fees to persons who don’t actually find anything. Payouts to companies who tender for contracts and are awarded the contracts but then don’t actually get to execute them. So for pushing a pen over a piece of paper they benefit handsomely. And the person responsible isn’t really responsible because it’s not his fault. The reason, because Bush says it isn’t. And I am not saying anymore it is Bush because he says it isn’t. He might say it is me.

The UDP administration cost us zero even though it cost us millions. However, let’s say zero. It sounds better. We’re all friends aren’t we?