The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie said yesterday that while his government is willing to disclose details to the public about the 2011 sale of the Bahamas Telecommunications Company that took place under the former Ingraham administration, it must also consider its relationship with Cable and Wireless Communications, the company that took over BTC.

His comments on the matter comes days after reports that 15 executives were paid $1.5m in bonuses following the sale of BTC by the Ingraham administration.

The report has renewed interest into the details surrounding the sale and raised questions about why the government has not established a promised parliamentary select committee to investigate the sale it has repeatedly criticised.

Mr Christie said: “I’m obviously privy to everything that took place in the BTC sale and obviously I was aware that one of the members of Parliament had made a request for a select committee to examine it.

“I happen to know all of the details of it and that is why on many occasions I have described the deal as not a good deal for the Bahamas.

“BTC owners now, Cable and Wireless, and the Bahamian people are partners and so I have no difficulty with the entire process being revealed to the Bahamian people, but at the same time I have to have a working relationship with Cable and Wireless with respect to BTC and hoping that they are preparing BTC for competition because that is exactly where we are headed.

“But on a number of occasions I have made public statements that refer, without being specific, that these payments were made and it’s very obvious who signed the cheques, who wrote the cheques and it’s very clear who did it.

“And so I don’t know whether it was ever attempted to be a secret, it was never revealed and now for the first time the Bahamian people are becoming aware of part of the story of the acquisition of BTC.”

Mr Christie said he was surprised by the bonus payments when he found out about them.

“I was surprised; but I wasn’t there. I don’t know what goes into having to provide incentives to the executives of a company that you’re privatising. I thought it was strange to be able to incentivise them that way, with some of them getting $200,000 plus, others getting over $100,000 so it was a decision made by the government of the former prime minister and it has to be seen for what it is and I’m sure in the fullness of time we’ll have wonderful debates and discussions on it.”

When asked about the previous call for the establishment of a select committee to investigate the sale of BTC, Mr Christie offered no update on the matter.

This week Free National Movement Chairman Darron Cash labelled the leaked reports of bonus payments a “deflection attempt” by the prime minister and the Progressive Liberal Party, adding that the $1.5m payments to executives were “well deserved”.

Mr Cash claimed that Perry Christie is trying to “divert attention away from his own government’s growing record of incompetence, corruption and scandal,” adding “his desperate acts will not work”.

The initial report said the payments were made from the Public Treasury.