Thomas C. Famous. Photo: Provided

During the last virtual parliament held on Friday, May 22, 2020, Bermuda heard One Bermuda Alliance (OBA) MP Ben Smith give a succinct and detailed account of the work that the Emergency Measures Organisation (EMO) has been doing to bring the island through the needed phases. Photo: Provided

Simultaneously most people are wary about political bickering between organisations, so no joy writing in that vein either.

What's a columnist to do?

So, today I would like to take a moment to thank Her Majesty’s loyal Opposition in Bermuda, the One Bermuda Alliance aka (OBA), for actually being extremely cooperative with the Government of Bermuda over the duration of the pandemic, lockdown and slow reopening of the economy.

During our last virtual parliament held on Friday, May 22, 2020, Bermuda heard OBA MP Ben Smith give a succinct and detailed account of the work that the Emergency Measures Organisation (EMO) has been doing to bring our island through the needed phases.

He painstakingly explained how each sector that was to be considered for opening was analysed and given clear directives.

Anyone listening could have easily believed that Ben, was the minister himself, as he had such a depth of knowledge of the subject matters.

The irony is that he is not the Minister of National Security but, as an Opposition MP he is the Shadow for Minister Wayne Caines.

A few weeks ago, it was decided at Cabinet level that Ben would be invited to sit in on certain meetings, as to allow the opposition to have a broad view and input on what was going on in regards to efficient crisis management.

Think about it for a moment, the government invites an opposition member to have input on government decisions.

This has obviously proved to be highly successful on many levels.

What this highlights is this, despite the traditional parliamentary cut and thrust, MPs from both sides generally have a large level of respect in each other's abilities and work. Even in disagreements, our different perspectives, life experiences, community contacts and community reach have served to put our island on a better footing than we see elsewhere in the world.

One has only to look at the United States to see the wide divide in how to handle this crisis. The Democrats want to ensure safety for the masses and to extend aid to all affected, whilst the Republicans primarily focus on rushing to reopen the economy whilst the pandemic has not even reached its peak.

A similar story plays out in the United Kingdom with Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson and his aides, fumbling from one public relations disaster to the next.

If one was to take a snapshot of the political climates around the world, it would be clear to see that ours would be comparatively utopian.

Well, at least for now.

Now don't get me wrong. The opposition has not gone soft and failed to hold the government to account. In Parliament they ask the needed questions about emergency regulations, extra spending and economic projections.

Anything less than that would be a dereliction of their duties.

So, whilst we will always have political partisanship in our island home, we have proven that we will cast aside those differences in party colours for the greater good of our people.

To this, every Bermudian should be both proud and grateful.

To Her Majesty’s loyal Opposition, I say give thanks.