So, it is the moment of truth.  The question is:

Do we rally around the BVI coat of arms and save our livelihood?

Or

Do we give in to the intense desire for individualism while the country falls?  (The war of the roses flickers in my mind.)

This is not a plea to excuse wrongdoing or corruption if and where it exists, rather, it is a call to lower the temperature of the oven before something other than the goose is well and thoroughly cooked.

Of course, we have the example of those ‘tallest and strongest soldiers’ of King Nebuchadnezzar who threw the 3 Hebrew boys into the burning fiery furnace and were, themselves, ‘consumed’ by the heat that escaped the furnace.

We are grey listed by the FATF.  That has its own consequences but it also brings a certain number of opportunities.

And if we follow the programme, it will make for an even stronger and better regulated jurisdiction.

I believe we all know the story of Dick Whittington and his cat.  When Whittington was at his lowest and ready to steal away from London, the bells chimed and he imagined they were saying:

“Turn again Whittington, Lord Mayor of London.  Turn again Whittington; Thrice Lord Mayor.”

And then the real work began to convert his dreams into reality.

We have a lot of work to do not only to keep BVI off the FATF’s black list but to get her off its grey list.  While we conflate the Bank of Asia saga with the listing, the reality is that if we do not handle that ‘fallout,’ well, all bets are off.

We heard the Premier calling for an investigation into the bank and its failure.  That is the right thing to do because he owes the public a full explanation that must include how public funds are invested.

But the Opposition Leader seems to think that only the results of an investigation carried out by the Governor can be credible.

We wonder when or if we will ever get to the position in our development where we can believe or trust ourselves to do the right things; To manage the BVI with honesty and integrity while demonstrating those attributes.

Like all developing countries, we have our struggles.  Unfortunately, we have been making a dog’s breakfast of BVI.  

Lavity and his contemporaries, though hardly schooled in the formal sense, bequeathed to us a BVI that gave us many of the tools to ensure our survival and success.

And yet, given the superior education with which they armed us, we seem unable or unwilling to resolve a number of the daily issues that we face.

Cohesion is one of them.  Our agencies operate in silos despite the talk of 'joined up government' and the public is left to navigate each as if it were a government in its own right.  That is intensely frustrating!

Inefficiency in dispensing government services is another:  Lots of promises; Little action; A nightmare for foreign direct investors; A painful exercise for residents; An impossibility for guest workers.

We have our own battles with ‘substance’ issues which have the potential to sink us the longer they remain unresolved.

We do not know if ‘our finest’ are as dedicated as they should be nor if the efforts of the Minister for National Security are bearing sufficient fruit.

And we are not aware that that Sword of Damocles, (The Order in Council) has been lowered although, it sounds, based on speeches from the Premier and His Excellency, that the conditions are met.

What kind of a country are we building?  What are the wishes of the people?

Who do the officials consider to be ‘the people?’

The growing complexity of Fridays is daunting.

Happy Friday!