Keep quiet and it will go away. Oh, and here is a nice tidy sum to make sure it does disappear.

I am talking about the iNews Cayman story today filed under iNews Briefs “Ex Cayman police commissioner settles suit for undisclosed sum”.

It is not surprising a settlement was reached between ex Cayman police chief, Stuart Kernohan, and the Cayman Islands Government. I can only wonder why it has taken so long. The costs in legal fees alone must have already reached $1M and since our High Court Justice Alex Henderson’s settlement for wrongful arrest was also around $1M, one can surmise Kernohan’s couldn’t be less.

The chances of any of us ever finding out what was contained in the Operation Tempura documents are becoming less and less. When the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office want the lid put on a mess it is.

I understand there is a non-disclosure agreement between the government and Kernohan not to tell how much so even more secrecy from our drum thumping ‘more transparency means good governance’ from our distant and not so distant overseers.

So whom do we have left to shut up?

There is the man who caused this costly fiasco, former Cayman Governor Stuart Jack, but he won’t say anything. He is a member of the club and protected. There is absolutely no way any police investigation will be conducted against him.

Even if there was such a thing here as a Commission of Inquiry as they like to execute in the United Kingdom (UK) it would result in complete exoneration. The persons serving on these inquiries are handpicked. It is only if the media is powerful enough and there is support from public elected parliamentarians (who don’t play by the game’s rules) and the huge majority of the public opinion is outraged, you might get to the truth. Even then there is a stumbling block because another police investigation has to be done. A long time has elapsed since the mess started. Years have gone by and vital evidence has been lost or ‘accidentally’ shredded due to environmental concerns, and memories aren’t as sharp as they once were. People have died, too.

And then there is the cost. Who would foot the bill? Us. You and me.

I ask again, who is left out there to coat with icing sugar?

Oh, yes, how can we forget? The former Chief Investigating Officer of Tempura, Martin Bridger.

But Bridger hasn’t played by the rules. He is not a member of the club. He is the patsy. The scapegoat for the whole expensive foul up. The loose cannon.

He has been thrown to the wolves.

However, he knows more than anyone else. He also has evidence in his possession. But he is going to have a hard time in disclosing it to anyone.

And does he really want all the evidence to come out?

There are some questions concerning his role in the inquiry as to his conduct and his motive.

Is he just an annoying fly or is he a hornet? I would suggest the latter. What I have learnt about Bridger is do not underestimate him. You do so at your peril.

I am sure there are Cayman residents who are quite frankly fed up hearing anymore about Tempura. They want it buried, too. Move over and move on.

Theories are cheaper than finding out the facts. They can also be more fun.

I know a secret but I can’t tell you what it is. I can only smile.