Those days are gone and will not come back.
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Introduction
The headline of the most recent Sun news article is entitled “PNPs want Mike Misick to return.” I don’t know who these people are but asking Mike Misick to return to politics currently is unwise. The former Premier served as the Premier from 2003 to 2009. It is a different era now and the operations of Government are not the same. In fact, the Governance has changed because of the allegations of the Michael Misick administration.
This article is therefore an open letter to the Hon. Michael Misick and the supporters. There is a court case pending and quite frankly, I think Hon. Misick needs to deal with that court case first and then, depending on the outcome of the case, then he should decide whether he will return to politics. Of course, it is everybody’s democratic right to run if they desire to, but we should put our country first before ourselves and politics.
Furthermore, I really do not know why people are asking Mike to return because those days are gone and will not come back especially if we continue to be a British overseas territory.
The Mike’s era and legacy
From 2003 to 2008, the world economy was booming which took a spin on the economy of the Turks and Caicos. It is not like the government did something strategically for the economy to boom. If that was the case, then we would not have experienced a recession. Remember in 2009 we started to experience a major decline in the economy and again that is because the world was experiencing a recession. If we want to give credit to the administration for the boom, then they ought to take credit for the recession.
During this era, millions of dollars were spent on marketing and promoting Turks and Caicos, making TCI a household name throughout North America.
During this administration, for the most part for Government tenders, locals were the preferred vendors over overseas vendors.
During this era, Turks and Caicos Islanders whether PDM or PNPs were able to secure a plot of crown land. Some people sold their land and crown land sales were very significant during your administration and it was a big element of the budget.
During this administration, a significant amount of money was spent on scholarships and a result hundreds of Turks and Caicos Islanders were able to go to university.
During this administration, roads throughout the islands were paved.
It was during this administration that the two hospitals were constructed and the contract with Interhealth Canada was established for 25 years costing us millions of dollars on an annual basis and yet we continue to spend a lot on overseas medical treatment.
During this era, there was more flexibility for the politicians. Politicians were not just policy makers, but they were also involved in the day-to-day operations.
A different era now
As a result of the alleged corruptions, the British has changed our way of governing, replacing our 2006 constitution with a more rigid constitution. I am aware that some progress is being made with this administration but not sure it will be on par with the 2006 constitution.
Our country continues to experience unprecedented growth and so you see it has nothing to do with who is in power. This would have happened no matter who was in power. Our economy is linked to the economy of the US.
Our current procurement process is something that was implemented by the British. The procurement process is run by a procurement Board and any business throughout the world can compete with the local businesses. So, you see things are different now. My understanding is that approval from the UK is needed to change the procurement process. I noticed that in this year’s budget, there is an expenditure element to review the procurement process. The procurement process appears to be so lengthy that many projects that were budgeted in the current year do not materialize in that year.
The distribution of land is now under the Attorney General’s office. There is not much crown land left for distribution. Furthermore, it is my understanding that freehold titles for crown land are not an option, and they must be leased. Based on what I hear the leases are excessive.
Before the budget can be presented to the House of Assembly, the UK must approve the Fiscal and Strategic Policy Statement (FSPS). The FSPS outlines the priorities of the budget. Therefore, the UK would not approve an FSPS that reflects millions of dollars on scholarships and marketing like what was done in 2003 to 2008 era.
Another thing that has changed is there must be a consensus in cabinet and my understanding is that consensus means everyone must agree.
The Government departments are run by the permanent secretaries not politicians. The civil servants are managed by the Deputy Governor and so the recruitment of civil servants is not done by politicians.
Conclusion
The people must be very careful what they ask for. This is not the time for Mike Misick to return to politics. Let the man deal with his court case. What is it that you want if he returns? What are you expecting to happen? Are you expecting him to take TCI to become independent? The reason I asked this question about independence, is that if we remain a UK overseas territory, the UK will not allow those former days of governance to return.
I encourage all of you to wake up and face reality. Those former days are not coming back. If you want to become prosperous, become an entrepreneur and become a force to be reckoned with. You don’t have to wait on former, current or future politicians. Real successful people are not successful because of politicians. They are successful because they took the risk and started a business.