‘NOT a day has passed without my questioning how I could have done such a stupid thing.
‘I have found no answer.’
Those were the words of Deputy Chief minister Bernard Flouquet yesterday as he made yet another public apology over the racist joke he told at a press conference in November.
But the deputy, who is also Public Services minister, still refuses to resign from his position as deputy chief minister. The States will decide his fate at a confidence vote at this month’s meeting.
Deputy Flouquet released a final statement on the matter yesterday, saying he would not comment on it again until the Assembly meeting.
‘Now that both the Code of Conduct Panel Report and the motion of no confidence have been published, I hope we can begin to see an end to this regrettable matter,’ he said. ‘All along, I have consulted close friends both inside and outside the States and I thank them for their assistance and confidence. I also thank so many islanders who have made contact for their support.’
Deputy Flouquet said the inappropriate joke had resulted in a ‘huge blemish’
‘I accept unreservedly the report of the Code of Conduct Panel, whose words have proved to be an object lesson for my future,’ he said.
‘I can only apologise once again and trust my political future to my States colleagues.’
Deputy Leon Gallienne, who led the call for the vote, maintained Deputy Flouquet should have resigned as deputy chief minister and was shocked he had not yesterday.
‘When I first heard he had made a statement, I thought it would be to resign,’ he said. ‘I still think he should resign and I am going to stick to my guns on that. My friends, colleagues and hundreds of islanders have also encouraged me to continue with this. I am determined to take this matter to the Assembly.’
Comment Page 23
Do the decent thing Page 24
Article posted on 14th January, 2009 - 2.29pm
45 Article Comments
Bernard Flouquet
Your career as a politician is over. The amount of denial of the context of this saga shows the public that you can’t be trusted.
Just because you are second in command does not give you free licence to say whatever you feel is funny.
I am glad the media blew this up because it shows the level of ignorance in our elected.
I don’t think there are enough racists around nowadays to elect BF into another political position.
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Stop giving this guy ‘column inches’. Keep digging that hole for yourself, Mr F. There is no future for you. Go away.
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I think that the fact even the high priest of offensive racist humour, Burnard Manning found the word ‘wog’ offensive speaks for itself.
Just go.
Go now.
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“NOT a day has passed without my questioning how I could have done such a stupid thing.
‘I have found no answer.’”
This seems contradictory to the repeated assertions that he has the overwhelming support of the public and the States. He plainly didn’t think it was stupid at the time.
What with Trott’s support and a coterie of apologists, this sort of crawling rings hollow. He even has the gall to back it all up with ‘trusting his future with his States colleagues’.
Talk about passing the buck. If he wins a no confidence, it won’t be his fault the public are left to put up with this ‘huge blemish’ but his colleagues.
The arrogance is astounding. For him to use such emotive words as his first sentence clearly implies that he wishes to beg for his political future.
Is this what the public wants? A begging blemish speaking on our behalf?
And still no one can tell me what worth he brings to the political arena.
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I feel I need to apologise to the DCM for my part in this “witch hunt” as I now fully accept that he is not, as I was led to believe, a racist but he is in fact, in his own words, just “stupid”.
I’m not entirely sure that his latest admission makes him any more suitable for public office!
I also note that he is stubbornly refusing to resign and, by not doing the right thing, he seems comfortable shifting the responsibility (and the potential public fall-out) onto his colleagues shoulders…an outstanding example of a principled politician, don’t you think?
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Let’s move on. Who should be deputy chief minister?
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Seems to me there’s a small group in Guernsey with a hidden agenda taking every opportunity to keep pumping away like drooling imbeciles at this ‘Flouquet faux pas’ thing? You’re like a bunch of schoolyard kids. Give it a break you lot. Get a life. Or are you so lily white, so miserably perfect, so bereft of human error that you’ve never said a thoughtless mistaken word, never taken a temporary wrong direction in your unblemished life ?
Bet you never offered multiple apologies for what you said or did either.
Meanwhile, here’s my 2009 New Years wish for you……………
MAY PEACE BREAK INTO YOUR HOUSE
MAY THIEVES COME TO STEAL YOUR DEBTS.
MAY HAPPINESS SLAP YOU ACROSS THE FACE
MAY YOUR TEARS BE THAT OF JOY
MAY YOUR POCKETS BE A MAGNET FOR MONEY
AND MAY THE PROBLEMS OF YOUR PAST FORGET YOUR HOME ADDRESS.
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We live in north america and it was heard about it here, the really silly thing is not resigning now….you might salvage something yet???????
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That was pretty close to a resignation – he’s just implied that he could repeat the same mistake tomorrow. After all the self-questioning he has reached the conclusion he does not know how his mouth works.
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Fast robert
what ground breaking idea has barry brehaut or leon gallienne ever come up with hardly the most effective or productive duo, bernard has done no less than to use his right of free speech a right in which barack obama himslf says in his book that he belives in the right of free speech no matter how politically incorrect the statement and i do not believe he would be offended one bit.
Bernard is a hard member of the states and does more than most people know maybe when the hounds baying for blood get the chance to gain a position of responsibility and authority they could sit a test to show how pc and squeaky clean they are and then the public would have no fear of them making them selves loooking like a begging blemish.
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Golly Bernie!….not a day has gone by without you questioning how you could have done such a stupid thing…and no answer can be found!
Not a day has gone by when at least one member of the public has given you the answer…you were stupidly racist and as a consequence you need to disappear of the political scene in what little will o’ wisp of dignity you have left.
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Expat80
What sort of post is that? Are you seriously proposing that our senior politicians are allowed to be stupid (his words)? You have a lower opinion on the process than I do then!
People make mistakes, people apologise, but they also seek redress – no hint of that here -only the admission that he cannot think of a reason why he was so stupid. Will he be stupid again?
He might be the nicest, most human person on the planet, but being DCM and an elected representative requires skill, judgement and tactful diplomacy.
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Expat80 – Why don’t you limit yourself to commenting on matters that require a lower level of intellectual engagement than this one – that way you will feel more at home and your ignorance will be more easily disguised.
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And just where is the recognition of those amongst us who have contacted Mr Flouquet to tell him that his position is untenable and he has to go?
The fact that he has spent every day mulling this over and still cannot see the blindingly obvious speaks volumes.
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I feel sorry for him but he should have resigned straight away. How humiliating to face a vote of no confidence. He was stupid for saying the joke but even more stupid for not resigning and laying low for a few years. At least then he could had a chance of salvaging his career and climbing back to the top with hard work.
Now, it is all what people think of when they see him, it is what he will be remembered for….
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Is this still being discussed? Gah. BF is about the most effective states member, who actually has sensible ideas on real things, and sees that things that actually get done.
So he made a joke in poor taste. Big deal. His resignation / sacking would cost the States far more than whatever one up might be achieved by getting rid of him.
Why don’t the people who have nothing better to do than whinge about stuff go and do something constructive.
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Pah
What are his sensible ideas?
They seem widely derided from what I’ve read.
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Pah, as Fast Robert says, his effectiveness as a politician is very much open to question, although I don’t doubt he works hard enough at it. The point you’re missing is that nobody is calling for him to resign as Public Services chief (although many think he shouldn’t be a minister of any description) – just his ‘external facing’ posts and in particular his position as DCM.
Incidentally, this would give him more time to concentrate on the job in hand rather than being an awful amateur comedian. As one other commentator put it, clowns should not be on the stage. Especially if it’s the world stage and they’re representing our interests on very serious matters indeed.
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If some of the politians calling for bernie to resighn, had half the brains he has, then this island would not be in such a mess.
for gods sake it was only a joke
every ones forgotten about charles and harrys comments in the last week.??
there are more important things challenging this island at the moment.
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Yes wobberler, there are more important challenges that require good judgement, sound reasoning, an aptitude for diplomacy and a skill in opinion convergence for the common good.
Which is precisely what Deputy Flouquet has failed to demonstrate. Therefore the importance attached to an analysis of his conduct in the last few months is made greater as Guernsey cannot afford to have someone in such prominence that appears to put personal pride in front of civic duty.
I don’t doubt for one minute that he works his socks off, a very commendable attribute, but lately the perception is that he has been working his socks off to remain in an external facing position that he lacks the skills to provide accomplished representation.
If he had half the intelligence you proscribe to him then he would have resigned at the outset and let himself be judged by re-election. That would have been a fair acknowledgement of his new-found self-analysed stupidity and would have given the States and the public a good reason to give him another chance.
Most people I know regard him as a failed clown. Not the sort of public response you want when a new runway needs building, a sewage system introduced and a solid waste management plant put on line. Three massively urgent tasks that he is overseeing to consternation within and without the States.
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Wobberler..if Bernie has twice the brains of most politicians then why did he do something so “stupid”.
Put aside your emotive reasons for supporting BF (chum, fellow racist, apologist or whatever) and just admit…he is not fit for purpose.
Charles and Harry are born to their status (rightly or wrongly) and did not make their comments publicly…there’s a huge difference between what they are accused of and what BF, an elected representative of Guernsey, has admitted to doing, at a press conference.
I agree that there should be more important things to deal with but his reluctance to do the right thing is keeping this topic very much alive.
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Wobberler. The politicians who are quite rightly calling for him to go wouldn’t have been so brainless as to utter such a mind numbingly crass and dim joke in front of an open press conference with the cameras rolling. Even when you put the racism element (which you clearly condone) to one side, there is no doubting that in terms of lack of judgement alone he is clearly unfit to hold this particular office. Don’t forget he was advised not so say it but went ahead anyway!
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Lets get one thing right, i am not a chum of bernard,and do not know him personally,but this man works very hard for the people of guernsey,also neither i am a racist.
I remember my father telling me sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.
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“…neither am I a racist…names will never hurt me.”
So where, if anywhere, do you draw the line Wobberler?
Was it ok for the young Guernsey footballer to use the ‘n’ word against an opposing mixed race player? Was it wrong to suspend him because words never hurt or because he works hard for his team?
I’ll tell you what I think. I think the Guernsey Football Association has taken decisive action to show that it has no truck whatsover with unacceptable behaviour and that it is absolutely in touch with accepted modern day standards. The GFA has set a fine example for States members to follow when they stage their no confidence vote later month.
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wobberler
I have nothing against the guy. It’s the professional position that warrants scrutiny. He has handled a minor situation very badly. What happens when the situation has bigger implications?
I don’t think anyone is calling you names, wobberler, just that you are standing up for a senior politician that does not have an ounce of acknowledgement that he has been offensive. He says he’s been stupid. He says he is sorry. But has he said what for? Has he made the racist connection? Has he apologisied to those that have contacted him saying they were offended?
No, it’s all been about him, and how grateful he’s been for his minority support.
That is the essential problem. You say he is serving the island. These actions spell out a different story. He wants to remain a senior figure at all costs, even if it damages the integrity of the processes involved.
Nobody wants to see this charade. The only reason I post is when people say ‘it’s only a joke’. It is not only a joke. It is crass ignorance. Something he still can’t explain. If he can’t explain why he was so ignorant then that calls into question his perception of the very pressing matters that he has a major influence on.
I don’t have a problem with your respect for him, I just don’t share it.
Please tell me why you think he is a valuable politician other than ‘hard work’. I am open to be corrected. At the end of the day he will have to have his worth debated by the States. I think it is sad that it has to be that way. It is a phenomenal that tax payers money is being wasted over a man’s ego.
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the best bet on this very “PC” forum is just to let them get on with it. they say the english like losers, so guernsey must like whingers. i would have liked to have been around when the nazis came to visit as i am sure more than a few of you on this forum would have held a welcome party for them. the fact is you dont like BF and anybody else on this forum who speak in support of him and his hard work for the people of guernsey…if you dont like the way the states are running the place then you should have stood for deputy in the last election. i also see that most of the whingers still dont use their real names. i wonder why ? dont forget to close the door on your way out…..
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Fast Robert, you moreorless hit my point dead on with your last comment. To the best of my (admittedly limited) knowledge, BF is about the only one who sees just how urgent some of those projects are, sewage treatment being one.
Do we cut off our nose to spite our face by sacking him? Sack him and you can almost guarantee that certain projects will get sidelined indefinitely.
It was a moment’s indiscretion. A lack of judgement once does not indicate a total lack of judgement. We all make mistakes. Yes, he’s a public figure, but I can think of plenty of other public figures (not necessarily in Guernsey) who have done far worse and “got away with it”.
The reason this seems to be such a big issue is because the hyper-sensitive must-be-PC mummy-pampered-me-too-much-when-I-was-a-kid mentality of half the population insists on attacking our own the moment something a little controversial is said.
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Fast Robert. I couldn’t agree more. Well said. This man is not serving our island; only himself, otherwise he would have done the honorable thing and walked to give a better man the chance of proving himself in the position. Having said that, it’s up to the voters to shift him at the next election if he won’t go. Lame duck with sauce extra. At the same time there are a few other muppets that need to do the honorable thing in the States for their incompetence and lack of integrity.
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Pah
I have never suggested that his worth as a Public Services facilitator, knowing what he perhaps knows of the intricacies of hammering out contracts with builders, should be sidelined. I have no idea if he is any good at that so I can’t comment. What I can comment on is the complete lack of disrespect he is showing his peers and the public by not making himself accountable for his own stupidity.
Please tell me Pah, and leigh haines, what “PC” means. You bandy these terms around a bit like certain tabloid commentators without having a clue of their derivation or meaning.
Politics is more than ‘friendly’ personalities. It is about public duty and a realisation of focussed public representation. My beef is with the ignorant abuse of democratic standards. If you are going to stand up and be counted then expect to be counted. This sorry affair has shown that he wants to stand up, fair play, but not to be criticised.
leigh haines, you express your hatred for public decency by invoking nazi collaboration. The good people of Guernsey, during the rise of open persecution of non-aryan peoples, did what they could in the face of a massive war-machine. I would say that it is the opposite scenario that you tabloid-fodder envisage. It is the predecessors of “PC-gone-mad” opinionators that drove the resistance. The same peoples that liberated the slaves and got the women the vote.
Think before you type nonsense.
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It’s a huge leap to go from being racially sensitive to being told this means you are either a potential Nazi sympathiser or a Mummy’s boy…nice mature, reasoned argument from the KKK posse! I love the way that political correctness (that’s what PC means by the way, think about it!)is always aligned with whinging or spoilt kids by those that would try and make light of BF’s racial intolerance. I would also suggest that the loss of any politician, at any level, is merely a comma and not a full stop to States business.
Do we really believe that major projects won’t happen just because Bernie the builder won’t be around to lead the charge?
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Leigh Haines, your over-emotional comments, stating that Guernsey likes “Whingers” and England loves “Losers”, conjuring up a defence for Flouquet by a stating that anyone who critises him is a Nazi supporter who wants to have a party with German invaders etc etc is not helping him! cant you see how silly you sound?
Seriously, if you want to defend the guy, give some facts on why he should stay in his external facing posts.
Many have stated that he is very effective as Public Services Chief by driving projects for the states and getting things done, but this is not the job that is in question. If anyone wants to defend him then they should state why he should stay as DCM, anything else is just emotional crazy talk.
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What was the outcome of the Code of Conduct search?
What where these oh so insightful observations the inquiry revealed?
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fast robert you seem to have a lot to say running guernsey down in general on all these my shout topics but if your into island politics then surely recycling and a sacking of a minister at HSSD would be equally calling for you to comment on???
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FORGIVE
FORGET
Is anyone here so perfect?
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SACK HIM.
LET HIM NEVER FORGET.
Steve UK exP-Pat – there is a difference between stupidity and racism.
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He can either go now or be humiliated in 2012 after three years of constant heckling for being a racist idiot. It’s his choice.
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melissa
I’m not too sure why commenting on BF’s buffoonery is ‘putting Guernsey down’. It was he who honked out his hilarity at the rolling cameras and it is the apologists that have crawled out from under their rocks that are doing the damage. But thank you for bumping the thread so that it remains in full view.
As for the other things you mention, isn’t Flouquet supposed to be ‘leading’ the way in waste disposal? Disbanding the People’s Panel (who evidently are not persuaded that our Bernie is an effective politician even in his own element) and scrapping the kerbside scheme are not endearing qualities within a Public Service remit. Therefore the continuing spotlight on him as a lightweight comedian will also illuminate his other failings. I’m still yet to be informed what it is exactly that he is so good at. There must be something there otherwise his peers wouldn’t keep voting him into senior positions, or is it because the States are truly inept and he’s the best man actually willing to put the yards in? Maybe. But should the jury still be out after so many years in politics?
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Just a quick observation. It is interesting to see how excited and the level of support the new American President has all over the world. Maybe the Guernsey electorate and the rest of the world would like to see BF on jam jars.
Maybe a few weekends spent in the stocks in town with a wet sponge bath for people to throw at their leisure might wise him up a bit.
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On the day when Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States of America I again urge Bernard Flouquet to consider his position, and to resign as Guernsey’s Deputy Chief Minister. The difference in their outlook is stark – Flouquet showing himself to be a small-minded man, Obama showing himself to be a man of great vision. No wonder our island is moving in ever decreasing circles with politicians like him and others who let him get away with his racism.
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fast robert
“bumping the thread so it remains in full view”???
it’s been hapred on about for agesLike you really need me to keep you all talking about it!!
I agree with the majority that he was out of order and was merely commenting on past posts and feel that now there are other things to be discussing and not all involve Flouquet
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Please for those who support Bernard Flouquet just say you support him as you think he’s done nothing wrong. You have a democratic right to do so. But you only diminish yourselves and show you’ve got no case to support when you start name calling.
Mr Haine’s banging on about PC only shows he wouldn’t know PC if it was a 10 ten truck and had run him over.
Bernard Flouquet made a racist joke at a press conference, is that dumb, is that stupid. No it is dumb stupid arrogance because he was told what every novice politician would know from the outset, do not tell racist jokes if you want to carry on being a politician, especialy in front of the press!. But no he knew better and told it didn’t he!. And instead of carrying his own can and resigning as DCM he’s shifting the decision onto his colleages in the States. Integrity or what?.
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Having come out in early support of Deputy Flouquet I have to admit now that I have been swayed by the more sensible of the arguments put forward for removing him as DCM
Let him retain his secondary post and we will see if his ego will allow him to take such a knock
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Like Ray I was initially willing to give Bernard Floquet the benefit of the doubt hoping the it was just a stupid off the cuff comment and not a deliberate racist comment.
The content of the report and the fact that he was seemingly warned have evaporated any support / sympathy I had for him. It seems he was warned about the appropriateness of the joke but still carried on.
Unlike Ray, I don’t think he is a good minister and feel it would be wise to make a clean break from the Policy Council, or even from the States.
Time to go Bernard
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Strangely I am finding myself agreeing with Stephen John. Looking back at BF’s political career, I am starting to concur with his detractors; possibly not for the same reasons.
No major loss.
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As President Bush said in an interview with Rush Limbaugh, 1st Nov 2006:-
“Anybody who is in a position to serve this country ought to understand the consequences of words.”
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