I have lamented in some of my Editorials at the slowness of some members of the Legislative Assembly to get pressing legislature passed quickly.

Some take months and some take years. Some remain stalled, seemingly forever.

Not so when it comes to removing the Speaker of the House, McKeeva Bush.

First to start with an announcement was Deputy Speaker, Bernie Bush on February 27^th.

Office of the Leader of the Opposition

For Immediate Release

Contact: Hon. V. Arden McLean JP., 916-0630, [email protected]

Date: February 27th, 2020

___________________________________________________________________

Hon. Bernie Bush MLA resigns as Deputy Speaker.

West Bay North MLA Bernie Bush today announced his resignation as Deputy Speaker

of the House with the support of Opposition colleagues, and with immediate effect, in

accordance with Section 65 2(b) of the Cayman Islands Constitution.

Mr Bush states, “It has been a great privilege to serve as Deputy Speaker of the House

and an honour that I will cherish long after I cease to be a member of the Legislative

Assembly.”.

Mr. Bush went on to make the following statements:

“The recent incident involving the Speaker of the House which resulted in a female

member of the public being injured, only to be followed by the Speaker taking a

temporary leave of absence, leaves me in an untenable situation when considering the

severity and seriousness of this incident and the implications of the Speaker’s planned

leave.”.

“Like many of you, this issue has prompted many of conversations not only within my

personal circle, and with constituents, but also with the Leader of the Opposition and

some of my other colleagues as well. I am encouraged by the many people who refuse

to stay silent and refuse to compromise their principles. More and more people are

choosing do the hard but right thing, instead of going along trying to justify the easy

wrong.”

“While I will forever be grateful and humbled by the confidence bestowed upon me by

the voters of West Bay who elected me to be a representative for my home district of

West Bay for close to 7 years, first and foremost, I am a father of 2 wonderful

daughters, and a grandfather to 2 very precious granddaughters.”

“I was raised to respect the role of women not only in our homes, but in our society as

well. Caymanian women have always had a strong role to play; they were the

backbone when our grandfathers and fathers went off to sea and through nature,

remains our first nurturers and teachers. I cannot condone violence against anyone and

as an elected leader, I certainly expect to be held to a higher, not lower standard, of

conduct.”

“The Speaker of the House has admitted that he will be seeking the help he needs, and

I wish him and his family well in what will be a long and difficult process. But with great

power, comes great responsibility, and as a representative of the people I must always

strive to lead by example. I therefore in good conscience cannot step up to fill a role

that has been tainted by the weakness of the Unity Government to take the morally

right, rather than, politically expedient course of action.”

“I started my political service on the premise that my principles will not be for sale or

rent and remaining in the post as Deputy Speaker, in view of the current circumstances,

would very much go against my core values. I therefore humbly resign as Deputy

Speaker with immediate effect.”

“I ask that you all continue to pray for the victim and the many other victims who have

the unfortunate experience of dealing with violence. I also ask that you also pray for the

many perpetrators of violence so that they may turn from the errors of their ways and

find the peace that they need. As a community, we are making strides in standing up for

what is right.”

Mr Bush ends by saying, “May God bless you all and continue to bless these Cayman

Islands.”.

#sheissupported #metoo

-Ends-

MLA Ezzard Miller replied on february 28^th

MLA Ezzard Miller

Contact: Ezzard Miller, [email protected], 327-5757 Date: February 28, 2020

Miller Calls for a Special Meeting of the Legislative Assembly: To Elect Deputy Speaker and Debate Vote of No Confidence

Subsequent to the resignation of Mr. Bernie Bush as Deputy Speaker, North Side MLA Ezzard Miller is calling on the Members of the Opposition to join him in requesting a special meeting of the Legislative Assembly to elect a Deputy Speaker and debate a Motion of No Confidence in the Speaker.

“The Cayman Islands is on the verge of a constitutional crisis. To forestall this, we, the Members of the Legislative Assembly, must assume our responsibility by invoking the relevant provisions of the Cayman Islands Constitution and the Legislature’s Standing Orders to deal with such matters,” Mr. Miller said.

The North Side Member said that this was urgent, as while there is no written Code of Conduct, there is certainly an implicit Code to which every Member subscribes:

“At the core of our unwritten Code of Conduct is a pledge to safeguard the respect necessary to maintaining the trust and confidence of the local population and the international community. When we damage that respect as has so obviously happened in this case, then our fidelity to the institution that we serve and represent must be challenged,” Mr. Miller said.

Invoking the relevant constitutional and legislative provisions has become necessary, Mr. Miller said, as “It is obvious that the Speaker will not do the honourable thing and resign. It is also clear that the Premier and the Unity Government will not revoke the current Speaker’s election.”

In the meantime, the North Side MLA, thanked Mr. Bernie Bush for his service as Deputy Speaker and for making the decision called for in the present circumstances, adding:

“I congratulate Mr. Bernie Bush on his bold and decisive action in tendering his resignation from the position of Deputy Speaker subsequent to the Speaker announcing that he is taking a leave of absence from the duties of Speakership,” Mr. Miller said.

Nevertheless, Mr. Miller was concerned that the resignation of the Deputy Speaker leaves the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands with a procedural void in the event there needs to be a meeting of the Legislative assembly to deal with urgent matters such as the passage of legislation to remove the Cayman Islands from the OECD blacklist.

To address such urgent needs for continuity in government business, Mr. Miller noted that section 72 of the Constitution mandates the election of a Member other than a Minister to serve as Deputy Speaker.

In order to convene a meeting of the Legislative Assembly, Mr. Miller called on Members of the Legislative Assembly charged with responsibility for the good governance of the Cayman Islands to invoke the provisions of Standing Order 8(2) of the Legislative Assembly:

“In addition to the meetings provided for in Paragraph (1), the Presiding Officer [the Speaker] may, in his discretion, summon a meeting of the House and shall do so on the written requisition signed by not less than seven members, stating the terms of the motion or motions which they wish to debate. Notice of any such meeting shall be given to Members as soon as possible by the Clerk.”

To achieve the required seven numbers, Mr. Miller is inviting the Leader of the Opposition and his five colleagues to join him in requesting a special meeting of the Legislative Assembly: “I would be happy to sign as the seventh Member in accordance with the stated provisions of the Standing Orders.”

This meeting of the House would be to debate two motions: the first, to elect a Deputy Speaker and, the second, to debate a Motion of No Confidence in the current Speaker the Hon. McKeeva Bush.

“As duly elected representatives of the People in the nineteen electoral districts, it is our responsibility to act in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and do the right thing for these beloved Island in safeguarding the reputation of the Legislative Assembly and of the Cayman Islands,” Mr. Miller said.

-Ends-

Today, Monday March 2^nd we receive this from the Leader of the Opposition Arden McLean

Office of the Leader of the Opposition

For Immediate Release

Contact: Hon. V. Arden McLean JP., 916-0630, [email protected]

Date: March 2nd, 2020

___________________________________________________________________

Opposition response to the holding of a special meeting of the Legislative

Assembly

The members of the Official Opposition met over the weekend to consider North Side

MLA; Mr. Ezzard Miller’s call for a meeting of the Legislative Assembly to debate a ‘No

Confidence’ vote in the Speaker as well as the election of a new Deputy Speaker.

Unfortunately, the Official Opposition could not get unanimous support as one member

of the Group, MLA Kenneth Bryan, was not in support. Without his support, the

Opposition cannot get the signatures of seven members, as required by Standing

Orders, to request the meeting of the Legislative Assembly.

The remaining members of the Opposition believe that the public should expect, and

rightfully so, that those who seek, and are privileged to hold public office, should be held

to a higher standard of conduct and that they are duty bound to protect the integrity of

the peoples House.

Throughout our recorded history, there are many examples of people taking

responsibility for their actions or inactions. It is imperative that all of us, as elected

representatives of the people, demonstrate our mettle and let the public know where we

stand on this very serious issue.

While we are also aware that there is also an ongoing criminal investigation, we think it

would be rather hypocritical of us, as political leaders, to require members of the Public

Service to…”not, at any time, engage in any activity that brings his ministry, portfolio,

statutory authority, government company, the public service or the government into

disrepute”…but have a different standard for our conduct.

Inaction is therefore not an option!

We must ensure the decisions taken about the functioning of the Legislative Assembly

are democratic and constitutionally legitimate. This is the time for the Legislative

Assembly to function at its best.

Martin Luther King Jr. said “…. the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in

moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and

controversy.”

Members of the Legislative Assembly have two choices in this matter. Either we rise to

meet the demands of our office, or we pull our office down to a lower level. We cannot

say we value fairness and accountability and be silent or passive when we were elected

to be the voice of the voiceless.

We now urge all elected members of Government to support the opening of the

Legislative Assembly to address this urgent matter.

#sheissupported

-Ends-

And finally, also today, we receive the release from MLA kennet Bryan

Kenneth Bryan, MLA, George Town Central

Press Release

The Elected Member for North Side has made a public request for the Members of the Opposition to support a call for a special meeting of the Legislative Assembly to vote to have the Hon. W. Mckeeva Bush removed from his post as Speaker of the House. This request comes on the back of a recent incident that occurred on the 21 February where the Speaker is alleged to have assaulted a female member of staff at a liquor licensed establishment on West Bay road. By now, most of you may have seen or heard reports of the incident in question.

I acknowledge the intention of Mr. Miller to safeguard the reputation of the Legislative Assembly but I believe the request for the Speaker to be removed is premature in light of limited information and with an ongoing investigation by police as to what exactly happened.

I also believe it is important that we allow the capable Police Commissioner and his staff to conduct their investigations and reveal their findings by why of action or inaction by their department. I trust the RCIPS is fully aware of the public’s interest in this case and will conclude their investigations in a timely manner. Once more information and details surrounding the incident become more apparent, it will be better suited to decide whether or not a vote of no confidence should be called on the Hon. Speaker.

Though I am prepared to allow the authorities the necessary time to conclude their investigations before such a serious vote is called, I am guided by the voters of George Town Central. If they feel that there is enough information already available in the public domain that warrants a vote of no confidence on the Speaker, then I am guided by their direction. Until that point, I will await further details that will bring better clarity to what transpired on the 21 February regarding the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.

In closing, it’s imperative that I reiterate where I stand on a matter of this nature. So, without ambiguity, I don’t condone the abuse of women in anyway and would be hugely disappointed if that turns out to be the case during the night in question. Though I am publicly registering my opposition to any abuse of a woman or abuse of any person for the fact, it is also important that I caution us all to remember that we shouldn’t presume guilt before innocence, especially without all the relevant facts and details.

Kenneth Bryan, MLA, GTC

-Ends-

Don’t you just love it when person take quotes from speeches from very prominent public leaders that have absolutely nothing to do with the case being debated? See Arden McLean’s!

Where do I stand?

Solidly with MLA Kenneth Bryan.

It is premature to remove our Speaker. Although it is nice to see that Members of the LA can actually move. Pity it wasn’t when much more urgent matters were being debated. We might not have been blacklisted now by the EU.