My title could easily have been “Twelve (almost the same) Just Men”.

Or another one – “Almost Just Men”.

You see, there is a woman amongst the twelve just men.

The new faces are Jaron Leslie, a lawyer with Harneys; Roland Bodden, a surveyor; and the lone woman, former manager of the National Trust, Christina McTaggart-Pineda.

So what am I referring to, if you haven’t already guessed?

Of course, the Central Planning Authority – CPA.

The previous Cayman Islands Auditor General raised concerns relating to the make-up of the CPA with its chairman, A. L. Thompson, being the owner of Cayman’s largest hardware store where most of our building companies buy their supplies.

Our residing Auditor General also raised similar concerns and to rub the Auditor General’s face into the builder’s yard, government have named the Deputy Chairman as Robert Watler, owner of a leading local building construction company.

The biasnes and the conflicts of interest that have pervaded the CPA over its many terms (members are appointed for three years) have been totally ignored by the government of today and yesterday.

Why?

The only bright spark, almost like a lighted candle in the wind, is the appointment of McTaggart-Pineda. I can only assume she was placed to appease the growing unrest and public opinion that the CPA will grant building permission to practically anything because of their interests, and turn a blind eye, or two, to all the concerns of the Environmental Department.

Bodden Town MLA, Chris Saunders, commented at one of the recent Public Accounts Committee meetings, “just about everybody sitting on that board is conflicted”.

Well, none of the genuine concerns raised by everyone outside of the Twelve (nearly all Just Men) and the governemnt have been met, and I for one are not surprised. There is, I fear a Club, comprising of just men, and so it will remain.

Here are all the names:

Apologies to Mrs Christina McTaggart – Pineda.