There is nothing sudden or precipitous or ill thought out about my remarks over the past week regarding the deficiencies of our current political system in general and my disappointment and disillusionment with the last two PLP administrations.

I know that I have stirred up a hornet's nest this week, and I have done so with the deliberate intention and hope of stimulating real and rational debate about where Bermuda is going. I am also acutely aware of the dangers.

But I have given this a lot of prayerful consideration; and I know that I am not the only one who feels the way I do. Several years ago, during the Jennifer Smith administration (if I can call it that), I warned that the PLP was in danger of losing its 'ideological compass' and my views on the quality of government under her administration are fully recorded.

When I returned to Bermuda last year as guest speaker at the BIU Annual Founders' Day Banquet, I warned the PLP in no uncertain terms that it was in danger of losing its 'core supporters' because it had not delivered on its promise and because there was no real evidence that of any serious intent on the part of what I call the 'inner circle' of the party hierarchy to do so.

But let's back up a bit. This is so important that we really need to define our terms. The PLP can be regarded as the political arm of the Labour Movement, made up not just of MPs and party officers and workers at Alaska Hall, but also comprising a large number of everyday Bermudians [mostly working class Bermudians who don't attend party strategy sessions, who never see Alaska Hall, who do little more than faithfully apply their 'X' to the ballot against the name of the PLP candidate for their constituency whoever he or she is and, frankly however talented or untalented qualified or unqualified for political office that candidate may be.

Many of them are my brothers and sisters in the trade unions, particularly the BIU. In this regard, the trade unions are to be seen as the economic arm, if you will, of the Labour Movement. Through all those years in opposition the two worked hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, to ultimately dismantle a power structure which had controlled Bermuda for many, many decades, if not centuries.

That is the PLP which I joined and whose aims I espouse and to which I paid a fair amount of money several years ago during a fund-raising drive for what was promised to be a 'life membership'. That particular PLP, while ideologically committing itself to fight racism in all its forms and guises, is a broad church open to all who espouse the aims and goals of the Labour Movement and who seek to institute progressive changes in the political and social body fabric. That's what I call the PLP, that's my PLP, and I have made no criticism whatsoever of that PLP.

But that PLP appears to have been hijacked by another entity. A small elite group who seem to have completely ignored the words 'progressive' and 'labour' and who appear to instead to be concentrating, judging by their words deeds and actions on the the word 'party'. That PLP has been demonstrating of late some pretty anti-democratic and authoritarian instincts. That PLP is becoming what they hate.

I know that the legacy of racism includes some deep and serious resentment on the part of African- Bermudians, but we have to get over it. We must move on. I don't want to be a part of a black political party. I am a Bermudian. We come in all colours; and we need each other. That PLP seems to think that people like me somehow placed our right of free speech and expression in a safety deposit box when we joined the party and that we have no right whatsoever to publicly criticise their PLP, even if we think the country is going down the tubes under their stewardship.

That PLP resents even the mildest criticism of this Government's direction and lines up its troops to attack the character and motivation of anyone who questions what they are doing or rather not doing. That is the PLP which I have been criticising of late. My comments represent my genuine beliefs, and I have a right to express them.

At Christmas time last year, two of my three daughters told me that they wanted to return to Bermuda after they have finished their university training. My first thought was: "What kind of Bermuda will they be coming back to?" What is my duty in helping to pave the way for their future and the future of a lot of other Bermudian children?

Q: Has this Government lost its direction and the faith of the people of Bermuda?

A: If its direction was meant to be to support the aims and goals of the Labour Movement, it certainly has lost the plot. And, sadly, it is losing the faith of this Bermudian. I can only speak for myself. It needs, firstly, to be more inclusive. Secondly, more responsive to and respectful of the views and needs of Bermudians. Thirdly, far less authoritarian and anti-democratic. Fourthly, consistent (as to which just consider its approach to criminal justice ? they really don't know what they are doing). Fifth, truthful ? the Westminster systems requires that Ministers who have misled Parliament must, I say must, resign if caught out. It's simple as that and I say no more on the subject at this time. Finally, it needs to be much more transparent and a lot less paranoid.: The reality is that my good friend Alex Scott was not a 'compromise candidate' so much as he was chosen by the same cabal that had brought about Jennifer Smith's leadership in order that that clique could continue to hold the reins of party leadership and power.

I had some faith that Alex was more than capable of breaking away from that group or at least becoming his own man and genuinely bridging the gap between what I call "the Party party" and the "serious party". Instead the evidence indicates that he has retreated into his own shell, I don't know who advises him ? if anyone ? but he certainly is shooting himself in the foot, a whole lot.

The Tony Brannon "Blackberry" issue. He could so simply have called Tony into his office, thanked him for his concern (which is genuine) about the decline in the tourist industry, apologised for what was clearly a racial insult and walk out of the Cabinet building with a new partner in progress.

Then there was Gina Spence Farmer and the plan on the part of the United Bermuda Party to appoint her to the Senate. In days gone by the UBP conducted some serious victimisation of PLP supporters, I remember well. But two wrongs don't make a right.

Then the whole issue of casino gambling and machines. There was absolutely no encouragement whatsoever of real public debate on the pros and cons. In his so-called 'state of the country speech', the Premier took great delight in recording how he had virtually bankrupted the owner of a vessel, who had brought his boat in for gambling outside the 12-mile limit, by imposing every conceivable Marine & Ports regulation on the vessel and keeping it grounded.

Then the issue of discrimination against homosexuals, a real problem in this intolerant community. Paula Cox claimed there was no evidence of a need to protect homosexuals from discrimination in the workplace and in housing. Give me a break.

Speaking of housing, Alex Scott brings back David Burch into the fold. Forgive me if I sound personal, I really don't mean to be. But David Burch is a public relations train wreck in slow motion. Just this week, he sought to justify turfing out a single mother Nikita Davis with her three children to entirely unsuitable and derelict accommodation when she was apparently $1,023 in arrears. Outrageous! And we remember how he behaved when he was in the Smith administration.

Minister Burch openly acknowledges that we have a serious problem, but he does not appear to know how to solve it. And it will get a lot worse. As to the Cabinet, I have said it before and I will say it again: square pegs in round holes and round pegs in square holes.

Do you feel me? Only one or two of his Ministers knows how to close a deal. With great respect to her, Patrice Minors is clearly not capable of running her Ministry. The thought of that Minister being in charge of Bermuda's bird flu strategy causes me to hide under my bed. I'm sorry, she just doesn't cut it; and I voted for her in the last election.

And don't get me started on the HSBC takeover of the Bank of Bermuda or on Morgan's Point or on the impact of international business growth on the cost and availability of housing. Seven years is enough time for the PLP Government to have gotten things right in these areas, and they have simply not cut it. Sorry, but that's the way I see it.

Q: Although critical of this particular Government, you must still believe that it has some strengths. What are those strengths and who are the strong personalities. Which PLP MPs do you admire and why? Which ones do you trust to get the job done?

A: There are strengths on the part of a number of the front bench and indeed some in the back bench. But, as to testicular fortitude, I am not so sure. Some of them tell me quietly, secretly and confidentially how much they agree with what I have said, but they just don't seem to be able to get the same point across in either Alaska Hall or the Cabinet Building.

What are they afraid of? Don't ask me to single out any particular MPs who I admire. There are some, but it would be the kiss of death for me to name anybody at this juncture.

Q: You talked about real issues not being discussed, for example gay rights. Do you think the whole Independence debate is another distraction that this Government could do without? Should they just hold a referendum now, be done with it and get on with tackling other issues?

A: While I have come around to the view that we should not go into Independence unless a referendum clearly shows that the majority of Bermudians support it, we are not yet ready for a referendum. The world has changed considerably. Bermudians can obtain a passport which enables them to live and work all over Europe. Which would make you more comfortable should you run into difficulties in Eastern Europe or in Asia: representation by the British Embassy or a phone call to this lot? Think about it.

I also conclude, sadly, that we are not yet ready for Independence and you can have no idea how much it saddens me to say this. Until we learn to work and live together, in mutual respect for our differing views and backgrounds, we cannot build a nation. It's as simple as that. I would love to live to see the emergence of the Bermudian nation, but we have lots of work to do beforehand.

Q: Does the UBP offer an alternative? Do you really believe that it has learnt its lesson of 1998 and changed or do you think that the appointment of Wayne Furbert as party leader is a cynical move that demonstrates it will do anything to get elected? What do you think of Mr. Furbert's new initiative to have a member of the PLP included in any future UBP Government? Were you surprised by that?

A: Well, Mr Furbert certainly hit the ground running. On casino gambling he appears to have promised a referendum or plebiscite. That resonates with me. I was completely surprised by the trial balloon he sent up regarding inviting a known PLP supporter or two into his Cabinet if elected. But there is precedent for this in other countries. President Bill Clinton appointed William Cohen, a Republican, as his Secretary of Defence and Cohen was a great asset to the Clinton administration, even though he never gave up his Republican credentials. That is what I mean by "inclusion". Neither party has a monopoly on wisdom.

Just because they are in the Opposition doesn't mean that the UBP ideas are always wrong and the PLP ideas are always right. And then there are those who support neither party, but who may want to contribute their skills and talents to the benefit of Bermuda.

We are just too small for this party political system with all its politics of divisiveness and racial hatred. We have to grow up. We must learn to think outside of the box.

Q: What is this third way of politics that you've been talking about? Do politicians tow the party line too much? (Paula Cox on gay rights, Wayne Perinchief not supporting drug testing for MPs)

A: The current debate started with my public expression of support for community dialogue around the stated aims and objects of the All Bermuda Congress. Now, I am not a member of that group and currently have no intention of becoming one. I also understand from the representatives of the ABC who have approached me that they are not a political party and don't intend to become one.

My understanding is that they are trying to stimulate public debate and discussion around some core, motherhood and apple pie issues like, for example, "developing a style of governance that is systemically democratic and participatory" and "systemically accountable to the electorate", developing " a form of governance and constitutionality where the people of Bermuda are sovereign."

We need an all-party, or rather non-partisan public discussion about some core issues which must be entrenched in our constitutional system and our system of human rights. Failing this, we shall either explode or implode as a community. Either way, it will not be nice and it will not be pretty.

Q: It's often said that Bermuda has a sophisticated electorate. Do you think this is true? Surely most people vote along party lines. The vast majority ? perhaps 90 per cent ? are divided equally between PLP and UBP camps and will never vote for the other side, regardless of how good / bad they perform. Is this a fair description and does this mentality need to be changed and if so, how can it be changed?

A: Bermudians are, on the whole, very sophisticated. Sure, we carry a lot of baggage. The legacy of racism has caused a lot of black-on-black jealousy, crab-in-a-barrel behaviour. Many of us resent what we regard the successes of our neighbours.

And for God's sake don't show that you have any ambition. You will be cut down for sure. This is all a part of the legacy of racism. The "justified inferiority complex" that permeates the current leadership of the PLP and about which my dear friend the late Walter Robinson spent a considerable time warning me about.

I now know that while my legs were cut off in the main by some of my white professional colleagues, my black friends ? particularly some of my friends in the PLP ? have been greatly relieved to see that I have been limited in the contributions I can make. At first this saddened me, then it made me bitter. Now the grace of God has taken over.

Hence, my speech at the BIU Banquet, "From Butchie, with love", in which I tried to make it very clear that all my criticism is accompanied by an underpinning of real love. No anger, no bitterness, no desire for revenge or restitution. Life is just too short.

Now things have changed. The times are different from the early days of the UBP and PLP. Yet both appear to be stuck in a time warp. They will, both of them, have to either adapt or they will simply perish. It's up to them. There is a vacuum of real leadership in this country.

The Bible tells us that "where there is no vision, the people perish". Nature abhors a vacuum. I just don't see black people voting for the PLP just because it is the PLP any more. They need to earn the support of their core supporters, which means a major course correction is urgently required. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Yes it could work. And so, too, could a system which relied on plebiscites or referenda or (as they call them in California) propositions put to the electorate and binding on the Government. That is why I have been encouraged by the literature of the All Bermuda Congress and want to stimulate public debate on some of their aims and objectives.

I have never left politics. Politics have been in my blood for my entire adult life. And, by the way, not all of our politicians are of low calibre. Just some. Been there. Done that. I don't want to go back. They also serve who stand and wait. I can help my community and my people in a lot of other ways.

I can't, except to say that I will have to die trying to save this Government from financially crippling the Union and turning its back on individuals who sincerely tried to work with them and who do not deserve what has been done to them.

I will also say that I shall be trying to convince the arbitrators to hold their hearings in public, and any pressure that can be brought to bear on the Government to allow public hearings would be welcome. It is, after all, in the public interest that the true facts should come out. But that's all on that issue for now.

Can I say, finally, that I appreciate this opportunity which the has given me to express myself in my own words. I have been through a major and quite wonderful metamorphosis, and I am still just a work-in-progress. I have been through times that would have killed a lesser man a long time ago, and yet I am still here. I have faced a number of serious challenges simultaneously.

Lately I have come to realise that the hand of God has been guiding me throughout. The love of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is my drug of choice, and I have no hesitation in saying it. In the book of Revelation, Chapter 12 verses 10-11, it is said that the people of God overcame the power of Satan "by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto the death".

Can we just break this down a bit? Christ, the Lamb, shed his blood for us. The 'word of our testimony' means, I think, how we live and how we express ourselves; whether we learn to love our neighbour as ourselves, whether we learn to love even those who persecute us ? that is really hard. And finally "they loved not their lives unto the death". I have had occasion to be reminded of my mortality. I don't want to go into all of this, but I don't even know how much more time I have on this earth.

But I don't care; I care about life everlasting, the life that I know is waiting for me after I have shed this mortal coil. And I am working hard on my "dash", the hyphen between the date of my birth and the date of my death. That is why I speak out and that is why I haven't the slightest fear of anything that can or will be done to shut me up. I hope you feel me.