In another shameful indication of massive government corruption, the report, which is reportedly condemnatory of several BAIC officials, was completed several weeks ago, but has not been released to the public despite many requests made by some parliamentarians and the media.
Meanwhile, Manager Troi Ferguson has been asked to take a leave of absence. This was confirmed by Corporation Chairman Michael Halkitis on Monday, but he declined to comment further.
Sources close to the situation say Mr. Ferguson is being blamed for a number of administrative mistakes but he has written a letter denying he was a bad manager. Mr. Ferguson was appointed last March to replace former interim general manager Luther Smith, the Prime Minister’s special assistant.
Mr. Smith had been appointed to replace Geoffrey Stuart, who was fired in 2002, after the PLP took over as government, in a controversial round of terminations that many believe were politically motivated. The management of the corporation has been mired in controversy and corruption ever since.
Accusations of misappropriation of funds have been rife over the past two years. South Andros MP Whitney Bastian raised serious charges on the floor of the House of Assembly, but those charges were denied by former Executive Chairman Mr. Syndey Stubbs and covered up by other Members of Parliament.
Despite compelling evidence of Mr. Stubbs’ gross mis-management, the Prime Minister, for almost two years, was reluctant to remove Mr. Stubbs as Executive Chairman.
But Mr. Stubbs, who faced controversy from the beginning, finally resigned late last year after another controversy, dubbed the “Korean Boat Fiasco”, in which he played a significant role, was exposed as an illegal scam.
Since then Mr. Christie has taken over ministerial responsibility for the corporation and Mr. Halkitis has been functioning as the interim Chairman.
