Former deputy leader of the Progressive National Party, Albray Butterfield jr., has voiced his consternation in a four page letter over an incident that put the Minister of Immigration and Labor in a position where a firearm was reportedly fired by a friend of his, in his presence and the presence of two innocent by-standing tourists over the Easter holiday weekend. This resulted in the lady receiving superficial injuries to her leg.
Butterfield said in in the letter that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link; noting that all it takes is for one or two rouge, reckless, irresponsible, self-centred and void of moral judgement government minister(s) to bring down a fragile government administration attempting to rebound from one of its most disgraceful periods in history, thus fulfilling the prophecy of the government’s critics.
He said the Previous Progressive National Party (“PNP”) Government Administration was brought crashing down with the sound being heard all around the world as a result of similar irresponsible and reckless behaviour of a few of its Government Ministers; and between 2003 thru 2008, no one within the hierarchy of the PNP or the Government of that day had the bowels to stand up and speak out publicly in condemnation of such action of its Ministers, until at the very end when the writing was already on the wall.
Butterfield said if TCI public officials, more specifically the PNP party’s public officials and its Government Administration’s image in public office are to change in the mind of the world at large, strong frontline supporters of both TCI political fraternities, local religious and civic leaders, and the electorate on a hold must stand up and publicly speak out, and rebuke such evils each time rouge behaviours and dishonest acts manifest itself from TCI public officials and the Government of the day.
He questioned why the senior Government Minister had not yet come forth publicly to the electorate and apologised for his alleged disgraceful conduct in public, or publicly apologise to the two innocent by-standing tourist that was injured as a result of his male friend’s alleged actions.
It is his belief that the dilemma that senior Government Minister had gotten himself into, could have been avoided and chided the Premier that quote:- “until you commence to instil the fair of God in your Government Ministers, and seek to have their moral compasses calibrated to find true north, one or two of your Ministers will always be an embarrassment to your Administration,” end quote.
Mr. Butterfield expressed the sentiments that he no longer has confidence in Mr Ricardo Don Hue Gardiner’s moral judgment to represent the Turks and Caicos Islands, both domestically and internationally and called on Premier Ewing, as well as H.E. Governor Rick Todd to ask for the resignation of Mr Ricardo Don Hue Gardiner from the Cabinet of the Turks and Caicos Islands Government with immediate effect, for breach of conduct unbecoming of a person in public office.
