Will The Opposition BLP Publish The Throne Speech Before The Barbados Government?

I’ll be darned…

According to an email that just arrived at Barbados Free Press, the Opposition BLP are at this moment considering whether or not to publish their copy of the Government’s Throne Speech – with commentary – on the BLP blog.

Apparently they wanted to take their time in responding to the Throne Speech, but calls are being made to see if they can beat the government in making the speech available to citizens.

If they have what it takes to pull this off, the BLP will have embarrassed the government from day one. We note that since they lost the election, the Opposition BLP have continued to utilize the internet to have two-way direct communication with citizens, while the Government DLP has abandoned their blog since achieving power.

This should be interesting…

Here’s the BLP Blog Link.

Government Abandons DLP Blog

We notice that the Government DLP Blog hasn’t published a thing – not even a thank you – since January 13, 2008. It sure does look like the DLP just used the blog and then abandoned it when they achieved power. No more direct communication necessary with the citizens, I guess. Perhaps now that they have achieved power the DLP prefers methods of communication that they can control.

It kind of fits right in with the Throne Speech issue, doesn’t it?

Nope, I don’t like the feel of this at all.

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Prime Minister Thompson: Where Is The Throne Speech? Where Is The Transparency You Promised?

Dear Prime Minister Thompson,

Yesterday thousands of Barbadians listened to the Speech from the Throne that outlined your government’s priorities and plans for the next year.

But thousands more were not able to listen to the speech or hear it all. And even for those who did hear it all, it is one thing to listen to a 44 page document being read – it is quite another to have it in your hand for consideration now and in the future.

Bajan citizens wake this morning to discover that the text of the DLP Government’s Throne Speech is not available to the public.

None of the media outlets reprinted the Throne Speech verbatim either online or on paper. It does not appear at the Barbados Government Information Service, at the DLP Blog or at the DLP party website.

Mr. Prime Minister, when you and your party launched your Election Manifesto you posted it online immediately and thousands downloaded it from here, here, here and at the DLP website. You and your party knew how important that action was to your election goal and you know how EASY and EFFECTIVE it was to post your Election Manifesto online.

Transparency and accountability are two sides of the same coin. By failing to make your government’s most important document to date easily and widely available to the citizens – you and your party have shown that your promises of transparency and accountability were merely words to get elected.

Prime Minister Thompson: this was your, and your DLP Government’s, first big opportunity to show that you have truly embraced transparency and accountability to the citizens of Barbados…

… and you blew it.