IN THE current climate of political divisiveness and uncertainty, one light continues to shine brightly.

Minister of Cultural Affairs, Dale Butler, has done what MPs are supposed to do – he's listened to public concern and acted.

In this particular case, that shouldn't come as a great surprise.

The effervescent, always-on-the-go Butler did much the same when he led the Sports Ministry.

Now again he's answered sportsmen's concerns, in particular the Comet sailors, and others by returning a national public holiday to its traditional date on the calendar.

Formerly known as the Queen's Birthday holiday, now National Heroes Day, which Government switched from June to October – coincidentally on the opening day of golf's Grand Slam – has been returned to its original date.

The change was never fully accepted. Indeed it prompted public outcry.

Fortunately, Butler showed the kind of fortitude which too many of his colleagues lack. He listened to what the people said and he responded.

It was a proposal which other MPs might have quietly supported although none were prepared to voice their opinion.

It was Butler who stood up and became the driving force behind the reversal.

And nobody was happier than those who sail in one of the Island's most revered sailing spectacles, the annual Long Distance Comet Race, which has always been contested on the June public holiday with hundreds of boats following the race fleet from one end of the Island to the other.

Sure, it could have been moved to another date but the sailors were naturally upset that tradition – one that had existed for some 65 years – had been broken.

So upset that veteran sailor Rudy Bailey had this to say: ""But what can we do . . . it's Ewart's (Premier Ewart Brown) world. We are just here to serve Ewart who is going to do whatever he wants."

It's comments such as that, echoed by others dissatisfied who certainly supported the holiday's change of name but not the change of date, that no doubt prompted Butler to take action.

As sensible as it seems to bow to public opinion, it's something which we rarely see these days.

Yet it's a virtue that Butler has shown throughout his political career.

As Sports Minister, he regularly met with governing bodies to discuss their concerns and was never afraid to listen to individuals' grievances.

In many cases he did whatever was in his power to find a solution. He wasn't always right but what made him so popular in an ever-changing Ministry which had blundered its way through the years rarely addressing athletes' concerns, was his enthusiasm and vitality.

At Olympic, Pan-Am and Commonwealth Games, he was always the supporter with the biggest Bermuda flag, at national football games he could be seen running down the touchline with tomahawk in hand rousing the crowd, as a runner himself he led the festivities surrounding the May 24 Marathon Derby and compiled and wrote the most comprehensive book ever written on that particular event.

And as for contact with the media (and as such the public) his cooperation was virtually unheralded.

It's worth noting that last Friday when the national holiday decision was announced, a call to and a message left for Minister Butler by Royal Gazette sports reporter Colin Thompson was answered within a minute!

If Bermuda had its own Guinness Book of Records that would have been an immediate entry.

Butler admitted to this newspaper: "Since the establishment of National Heroes' Day, there has been strong public sentiment to celebrate that holiday in June rather than October. In an effort to choose our own holiday, the Government established the second Monday in October as National Heroes' Day. This has not gone down well and we have had feedback from all quarters of our society, and as representatives we have been bombarded to reconsider."

Almost without precedence within Government, Butler even said sorry.

"I, as the Minister, apologise for the date which has proved to be unpopular. The Government has heard all of the feedback and has now reconsidered."

Some 15,000 members of the public are believed to have signed a petition against Government's decision.

But then petitions previously presented had been known to have been tossed into a Cabinet wastepaper basket. This time somebody actually listened.

If only other Ministers could take a leaf out of Butler's book!

* * * *

CURRENT Sports Minister Glenn Blakeney's name has cropped up in this column a number of times in recent weeks. And no, it's not a vendetta!

It's just because that too often whenever he opens his mouth, he plants his foot in it.

In the House of Assembly last Friday night, on a seven-hour debate sparked by Wayne Furbert's call for Parliament to offer an apology for past racial injustices, Blakeney offered an invaluable contribution by claiming that at least "80, 85 or 90 percent of journalists are non-Bermudian and white."

Not is that only misleading, it's not even vaguely accurate.

His grasp of mathematics is about as impressive as his reluctance to communicate with the same media he attacks within the privileged confines of the House where there's little chance of rebuttal.

On the Gazette Sports Desk, for instance, three chairs are occupied by three black Bermudian journalists and three white expatriates.

If he'd bothered to research the subject on which he seems to promote himself as an expert, he'd have found out his figures made no sense whatsoever.

What he might have found out is that both black and white journalists have moved onto establishments where they can demand a much larger income (ask Glenn Jones, a former black employee here who now serves as the Premier's Press Secretary).

Serious journalists tend not to drift into public relations unless dollar signs are flashing before their eyes.

The non-existent imbalance which the Minister attempted to highlight was no doubt aimed at this newspaper. But those who watch ZBM will have noticed that their key newsroom staff include Gary Moreno (the same Moreno whose own confrontation with Minister Blakeney at Cup Match a couple of years' ago ended up in court), Tari Trott (another former Gazette employee) and Janelle Ford – all of them black.

The sports website IslandStats is run by black Bermudian Earl Basden and Blakeney's own radio station owes much of his success to social commentator Thao Dill.

And there are of course a number of black newspaper columnists - Ira Philip, Larry Burchall, Al Seymour, Alvin Williams, Stuart Hayward, Clyde Best, Shaun Goater, David Bascome, Clay Smith, Lionel Cann . . . the list goes on.

Misleading the public has become the Minister's hallmark since he took office.

But strangely neither the Opposition nor those in his own party have taken him to task.

* * * *

DEADLINE for late entries for the 100th anniversary of the Marathon Derby is tomorrow and it will be interesting to see whether organisers reach their target of 1,000 runners.

If they do, it will be surprising because of the upheaval after they announced that all entrants would have to donate $100 to a charity named by the Derby organising committee.

That demand appears to have remained in place, despite assurances last month that runners would not to be required to make a donation.

According to the official entry form, the charity donation is 'mandatory'. Late entrants will have to pay an entry fee of $55. And if they aren't members of Bermuda Track and Field Association they will have to fork out a temporary membership fee of $20.

Grand total – $175!

The runners could get from Somerset to Hamilton and back by taxi for about a third of the price.

– ADRIAN ROBSON