While you were sleeping! Turks and Caicos Islands

#TurksandCaicos, July 5, 2024 – The Former Deputy Premier Sean Astwood has raised significant concerns regarding the transparency and decision-making processes of the current government. Hon. Astwood concern stems from what he sees as the government’s inconsistent posting of Cabinet minutes and a significant, yet largely unnoticed, increase in retirement allowances for former legislators.

In an article, Hon. Astwood highlighted the government’s cessation of posting Cabinet minutes, a practice essential for maintaining public trust and accountability. Following this article, the government issued an apology, attributing the lapse to a staff shortage and resumed posting the minutes briefly. However, this effort was short-lived as the minutes have once again stopped being posted. Also noteworthy is that after an extensive search the minutes for the last half of 2023 seem to not have been published.

Of particular concern to Hon. Astwood, is a recent Cabinet decision, disclosed in the temporarily resumed minutes, to increase the retirement allowance for former legislators by 20 percent, effective April 1, 2024. This decision appears to have been lost in what he describes as an information dump when four months of cabinet minutes were release at the same time. The Former Deputy Premier believes this lack of attention is a deliberate attempt to avoid public scrutiny ahead of the upcoming elections and on the heels of the government giving themselves almost a 40% raised just in December of last year.

Hon. Astwood asserts that transparency and accountability are fundamental to democratic governance, emphasizing the public’s right to be fully informed about decisions that affect their resources and governance. The government’s failure to consistently post Cabinet minutes undermines this principle and raises concerns about what other vital information might be withheld.

Honourable Astwood calls on the government to: Resume and Maintain Posting of Cabinet Minutes: Ensure that all Cabinet minutes are promptly and consistently made available to the public.

Provide Justification for the Increase in Retirement Allowances: Offer a transparent explanation for the 20 percent increase in retirement allowances for former legislators and clarify why this decision was made without adequate public disclosure and debate.

He also demands that the government be consistent in the way Cabinet Minutes are written, it should not be that tender X was awarded to “John Brown” and tender Y was awarded to “a named individual”.

This type of seemingly manipulating the minutes only creates an environment of greater distrust for government and its processes. Enhance Transparency and Accountability: Commit to greater transparency in all governmental processes to restore public trust and confidence.

Honourable Astwood emphasizes that accountability is not a partisan issue but a cornerstone of democracy. The public deserves to be informed and engaged in decisions that impact the nation’s governance and resources.