next general election or until such time as Independence does come to Bermuda.'' That is an extraordinary statement for a leader to make, especially when he is at odds with the membership of his party.

The Premier is saying that he is supporting an initiative, Independence, which has played into the hands of the Opposition Progressive Labour Party which will benefit if Independence is defeated. Further, he has said that if the people reject the referendum platform which he supports "it will strengthen the hand of the PLP''.

The Premier is also saying that in bringing forward an initiative which appears not to have found great favour with his public, he has taken the risk of making Bermuda unstable for a number of years. Bermudians should all remember that a stable Bermuda is at the very core of Bermuda's success.

If we listen to what the Premier says, at worst, in fostering a referendum on Independence, the Premier has made a blunder which will seriously damage his Country. At best he is making these statements in an attempt to scare people into following his lead and voting for Independence. There are two elements in the scare factor, one is the fear of many UBP supporters who oppose Independence that Bermuda would be much worse off under a PLP government. The Premier is quoted as saying that there is some merit in a suggestion that a no vote on Independence could hand the political momentum to the PLP.

The other scare factor is the general public acceptance of the need for Bermuda to be stable in order for its success to continue.

Any politician who talks about instability, of course, runs the risk of suggesting instability and that is a very dangerous thing to do.

It is really very sad to see a long standing leader who has made uncountable contributions to Bermuda reduced to trying to scare Bermudians into supporting his point of view.

Once again on television, the Premier said that the referendum needs to be successful because Bermuda needs "to move on''. Everyone, of course, is in favour of "moving on''. But in this instance the Premier is rather like the "information'' in the Independence advertising, presenting only one side.

What the public gets is only the favourable picture. The Premier says "move on'' to imply we will be better off but he fails to point out the dangers we might well encounter when independent.

The people should make their own decision on Independence for themselves and should try to ignore the political nonsense which is going on in Bermuda. This is a free, open and equal vote. There is absolutely no reason not to vote, no matter what some people say.

If you think you will be better off after Independence, then vote "Yes''. If you think you might not be better off after Independence, then vote "No''.