Vexed Bermoothes

I am saddened that the Speaker of the House chose to censor part of the Opposition’s Response to the Throne Speech last week.  It reflects poorly on the role of our Parliament as a “marketplace of ideas” and home to free debate.

Here is the section of the Response that was censored:

“If we take the Premier at his word, then even the Government believes that its own reform process is floundering. 

On the other hand, Mr. Speaker, some in our community have argued that Minister Horton was a victim of political manoeuvering and that internal PLP politics was given a higher priority than continuity in education reform.

If so, it’s very discouraging, as our students will end up as collateral damage in a battle they didn’t ask for. Regardless of what happened behind the scenes, Bermudians are left to watch the continuing saga of PLP mismanagement of the education system.

Seven education Ministers in ten years: it’s a sad testament to the failure of the overhyped PLP education promises that swept the party to power under former Premier Dame Jennifer Smith in 1998.”

Hardly worthy of censorship.  Odd that they’d choose to repress it.  I’ve heard far worse on the street in recent weeks.  By banning the text, they’ve just fanned the flames of rumour. You’d have thought they’d be more ashamed of Kim Swan’s accounting of their fiscal flatulence.

One would have hoped the Speaker would have been ready to censure the Premier’s own lurid ruminations on the voting preferences of white Bermudians that took place in the same session. But alas, perhaps I hope for too much.

By throwing its weight around, the PLP has merely attracted even more interest to a subject that has our community riled up as well as undermined the perception of independence of the Speaker’s Office.  It is yet another bad precedent.