Date: Friday, 4 April 2025
Candidates
- Craig ‘Festa’ Frederick (PPM)
- Alric Lindsay (IND)
- Gary ‘Peanut’ Rutty (CINP)
The forum
George Town South’s political newcomers Craig ‘Festa’ Frederick of PPM and Gary ‘Peanut’ Rutty of the Cayman Islands National Party squared off with independent candidate Alric Lindsay, now on his third attempt to capture the seat, at the 17th Chamber of Commerce Candidate Forum on Friday night.
All three are relying on their work in the community to give them the edge to nab the seat currently held by PPM MP Barbara Conolly, who is not seeking re-election.
Conolly has endorsed Frederick to take her place. It remains to be seen if that will help pull off a win for him come 30 April.
The candidates each faced 12 questions on a range of topics from economic sustainability to proposed policies.
Key issues
Among the top issues for the three were the rising cost of living, Cayman’s education needs, the state of government finances and the absence of effective immigration controls.
They also pointed to an urgent need to address the lack of employment opportunities for young Caymanians returning home from college, which Frederick said has become a growing concern.
“There should be a plan in place in order for me to come home as a college graduate and be able to find a job in my Cayman Islands,” Frederick said.
He said government should be preparing to provide opportunities for students on scholarships returning home.
Rutty shared this view, saying that this situation has hit close to home as his son has returned home with a bachelor’s and master’s degree and is still looking for work.
“If we’re going to send our children off on scholarships to get education, we need to give them the opportunities when they come home, especially even in government,” Rutty said.
This, he said, is where Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman (WORC) needs to run parallel with immigration enforcement to ensure permits are restricted and young Caymanians are given “first priority” to be able to prove themselves in a job.
Lindsay noted the absence of a database to help determine the country’s labour needs, which could help students study subjects that would match the needs of the market.
“If the work of the [Strategic Economic Advisory] Council was not ignored, we would have that database in place functioning now, whereas businesses would tell us what they need, and we would make sure that our kids are studying subjects that are relevant to the industry,” Lindsay said.
Notable exchanges
During the forum, the topic of managing government finances picked up steam, as each candidate expressed the need for a steady hand and firm grip on the purse strings.
While the absence of timely reports, clear financial figures and a sufficient surplus came into focus, there was some debate on who would be the right person to take charge of the coffers.
Frederick leaned on the fiscal leadership of former Finance Minister Roy McTaggart, who is contesting his George Town East seat, as the person to be at the helm to put Cayman “back on track when it comes to our finances”.
Rutty disagreed and said, instead, “It’s going to take a man like Dan Scott to get these Cayman Islands finances, government finances sorted. We cannot sit back here and continue to watch the overspending.”
Lindsay, who is running as an independent, weighed in on government finances and its management over the previous years, saying, “This is one of the reasons why I’m running in this election is to bring back governance, accountability and transparency into this system.”
Regarding ministerial aspirations, Lindsay said if he were elected and had to take up a portfolio, he would like to be minister of finance or head of a newly created Ministry of Justice, which would address the shortcomings in the courts.
Frederick, on the other hand, said he would like to take up the minister of sports, culture, heritage and youth post, which he said would allow him to draw upon his experience with Pirates Week and CayMas.
Rutty, however, sought to shatter those aspirations, saying pointedly, “I appreciate what you want to stand for, but unfortunately, you won’t get the opportunity, because I will be elected on April 30.”
He said he entered the race to “make a difference” and give Caymanians a chance, which he said he will do as tourism minister, adding that he was also interested in Border Control.
Standout moments
As the discussion turned to cruise berthing, Rutty made it clear he was not in support. In fact, he expressed displeasure with Cayman’s current offering.
“I find our tourism product to be absolutely garbage. Why in the world would we want to bring in larger cruise ships at this time with a higher clientele to experience a tourism product that I am not proud of and I’m not happy?” he said.
He said for the last 20 years, the product has continued to slip away.
“We need to re-emphasise, get our Caymanians back,” he said.
He said the focus has to be on the product and smaller ships.
Frederick, however, defended the industry, saying that the cruise tourism product in particular is largely operated by Caymanians.
“We have mostly Caymanians that are actually business owners, entrepreneurs in the cruise industry,” he said, adding, “We’re now saying to them that you’re not important. Your family of those 3,000 people that work within the cruise tourism, you’re not important.”
Lindsay said he believes the cruise infrastructure was “cart before horse”.
“If you’re going to consider building a facility, first you need to consider if we have activities in George Town, for example, if that’s where it was planned, to cater to the extra crowd that would come from these extra facilities. So we haven’t considered that, and we want to build this,” Lindsay said.
The three also took issue with the revitalisation of George Town and the difficult traffic situation it creates.
Rutty said the closure of Cardinall Avenue has “created havoc”, compounding the traffic situation in addition to the lack of parking for shoppers to access businesses there.
He said there needs to be a heritage draw on the waterfront, not just for Pirates Week.
Lindsay said he believes the revitalisation project was a “waste of money”.
He said businesses must be consulted on what is needed and what needs to be done to fulfil that need.
Frederick said the “hustle and bustle” of George Town that he remembers growing up is no longer there.
He said there needs to be “urban living” in George Town to encourage people to live and explore downtown.
He pointed to the “horrid” parking situation in George Town, which prevents people from going into the capital to support businesses located there.
When it comes to South Sound, Rutty said he believes a proper “fuel farm” is needed so the Jackson Point fuel tanks can be moved out of the community for safety.
Lindsay said a long-term development plan for the constituency was needed as well as a proper storm water management system.
Frederick said he would support creating affordable housing in George Town, but it cannot only be built at an affordable cost; it must be built so that people can afford to live in it.
“Meaning creating an energy-efficient, eco-friendly unit that they don’t have to worry about paying that $8–$900 electricity bill because the house wasn’t built efficiently,” he said.
He also said he was mindful of the community concerns on overdevelopment in the area and he would not support taller buildings on the waterfront.
At the close of the forum, there were some parting shots from the candidates, as Frederick reminded voters that experience is needed at this time.
“We aren’t ready for a party that is going to be learning on the job. We aren’t ready for a George Town South representative that doesn’t even live in George Town,” he quipped.
Rutty, who lives in East End, fired back with his own jab, saying that the country was at a crossroads.
“I see we’re at a breaking point, and we must break that cycle. Can’t continue to keep voting the same people, the same parties and the same tired politicians and politics and expect different results,” he said.
Lindsay offered himself as the best option for the George Town South community, saying, “I see myself as a servant of the people. I see myself as a consultant to the public service. I see myself as executing the interests of people and the country as a whole, executing their best interests.”
The next forum will be held on Monday and will feature George Town West candidates.