Dear Sir,

I am happy to report that, after 40 years of neglect, our Spanish Point public road has now finally been repaved. It was completed just before the arrival of His Majesty King Charles III.

The King’s Bermuda visit was meticulously planned some time ago as was the itinerary for his coastguard boat ride. It included a stop in Dockyard and a destination/drop off location at Spanish Point Boat Club. He was staying at Government House, five minutes drive from the boat club. Was the road paving a happy coincidence? In politics, timing is everything. I think we should invite His Majesty to visit us annually.

I recently saw a picture on social media of our iconic Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, taken on May 10. The rust stains from the railings were hideous and it looked like a sad and abandoned relic from our past. There were a number of online comments made, and this one made me smile. “The Government should be ashamed of themselves for letting this go this far, as this is a landmark, tourists come here to visit and see.”

We should all know by now that there is no such word as “ashamed” in any government’s vocabulary. There is certainly no government shame, when we, the public, are forced to drive on dangerous, pothole-filled public roads or over rusted out bridges for decades and there is no shame when stupid, costly, ill-advised government spending decisions require us, the taxpayer, to pay twice to resolve them.

There was no government “sorry” when $800,000 of our money was handed over to a Savvy music man, who flew out of Bermuda giving us nothing in return.

He currently lives freely in the United States and, incredibly, has actually written a book about how none of it was his fault. In a way, I agree with him, because it was the Government who was irresponsible with the financial structure of his contract.

There was no government “sorry” when an estimated $150 million of our money was spent on what was to be an (albeit ill-advised) affordable housing development for Bermudians.

As a result of this fiscally flawed policymaking, these completed residences are financially out of reach for the average Bermudian and thus will only attract the “well heeled” who can afford the exorbitant price tags.

There was no apology (but plenty of finger pointing) when the government was a guarantor for a luxury housing development to the tune of $165 million, which ultimately failed and eventually required the taxpayer to cough up $230 million to settle those legal shambles.

These five, partially completed, multistorey buildings stand out like propped-up skeletons, staring back at us as an expensive reminder, but their legacy has already faded from most people’s memory like so many other examples of government incompetence.

There was no government conscience to be “pricked” when a unique and tranquil 37-acre, mature parkland, which the Government itself saved in order to protect it from massive commercial development, but who then proposed a noisy tourist amenity to be allowed inside this park, which would completely destroy its uniqueness (we had to mislead you?) …

In plain sight and without apology, the Government remains committed to using our money to fund a gaming agency, which has no industry to regulate — $16 million in funding so far. No shame there.

The most egregious example to date? There is apparently no shame when a Bermuda Hospitals Board bureaucrat ignores “best design practice” and, as a result, we patients end up with a $1 billion-plus acute care facility, the design of which is unsafe and therefore not fit for purpose.

This is our one and only emergency/critical care hospital in Bermuda. The fact that this recent, explosive revelation received little in the way of outcry, from the Government, the Opposition and even the public, just confirms that we are all aiding and abetting the gross abuse of the public purse and its irresponsible, unapologetic managers.

“Three groups spend other people's money: children, thieves and politicians. All three need supervision.” — Dick Armey

BEVERLEY CONNELL

Pembroke