The Tribune

ACCORDING to Phenton Neymour, former state minister for the environment, the Christie government has “shown weakness” by not firing Leslie Miller as chairman of BEC.

We agree that they have shown “weakness”, but weakness only because no one among them has the guts to battle the unions and the unorthodox practices at the corporation that is forcing lights off in many homes, and contributing to the high cost of living that is almost pricing the Bahamas out of the tourist market.

From reports, it appears that BEC’s equipment has been neglected to the point where a new plant is needed and new rules put in about daily maintenance. Those of us whose businesses have to depend upon sophisticated equipment know how lax most Bahamians are on maintenance and that if they can tie a piece of string around a broken part they will do so rather than having it properly repaired while it is still a minor problem. Instead many will wait until there is total collapse and the equipment comes to a complete stop before they will cry for help. The cry comes so late that rather than a small, relatively inexpensive correction, the whole machine has to be replaced, costing many thousands of dollars.

This might not be the problem at BEC, but in our more than 50 years experience we known that daily maintenance is not a part of the Bahamian psyche. Many Bahamians in these positions obviously do not know that “a stitch in time saves nine”.

Mr Miller has stopped “double dipping” at National Insurance, where a BEC staff member on sick leave was not only receiving National Insurance, but was also collecting his full wages for his missed days from the corporation. It is slackness like this, which Bahamians can’t get away with in the private sector, that is pushing up electrical costs for the average Bahamian. Bahamians —not the union, of course — should applaud Mr Miller for this achievement. It is obvious that Mr Miller was reappointed because we know of no one in the Christie government who would have the guts to battle the union as he does. The public should give him its full support because he is taking the abuse in a fight that will benefit every Bahamian who receives a bill from BEC.

Nor is there anyone in the Christie government who could take on the union in the battle to reduce overtime and all the wheeling and dealing that goes on behind the scenes. All of this has added to the cost of our electrical bills.

In a press conference in March, Mr Miller announced that overtime pay last year was cut by $4.2 million over the previous year — in other words by about 35 per cent. And up to March of this year there was a further cut of $2.2 million. Mr Miller has promised even more reductions.

If the corporation were managed properly as a business should be managed, not only would Bahamians be paying lower electricity rates, but BEC would be meeting its own costs, rather than dipping into the Public Treasury, which drains the pocket of the Bahamian taxpayer.

Little wonder that Bahamians — especially business persons – are upset about VAT. This tax has been made necessary so government can pay its bills, including the double-dipping, poorly managed corporations and unions that want to maintain the status quo.

Yes, Mr Neymour, because of government’s weakness, it needs a Leslie Miller to go in and butt heads and do their dirty work for them.

This is what should be done throughout the overburdened civil service. As Mr Sean McWeeney observed many years ago, the civil service is a large tree that needs pruning. The service has many outstanding members, but it also has too many hangers-on, mainly political appointees, who are dragging the whole service down — of course, at a cost to the Public Treasury. It is the Bahamian taxpayer – now to be burdened with VAT ­– who is going to feel the drain.

It’s a pity that there isn’t another Leslie Miller to do the job in other areas of government.

••••••

McDonald’s Farm …

FNM leader Dr Hubert Minnis has blown the whistle on another apparent $20m agricultural project at Andros that seems to be headed for failure.

Pointing to Andros, parts of Abaco and Grand Bahama, Mr Christie has said that the country’s agricultural future lies in the northern Bahamas due to large areas of available land and the abundance of fresh water.

With some 200 livestock to be imported over the next few weeks, Mr Christie announced at a tree planting ceremony in February to commemorate the official opening of Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute’s (BAMSI) commercial farm, that the institute will “grow the city of North Andros”.

“A big part of making BAMSI a success will be a commercial farm,” he said. “This planting is symbolic of a new beginning and new purpose for this piece of work in North Andros represents the government’s decision to make a concerted effort towards reducing the $1 billion worth of food we import to feed ourselves and our visitors.”

Giving an update on the project, Dr Minnis, who criticised government for missing the opening date for BAMSI, said on a tour of the site that he found unpaid workers and claims of victimisation. With no apparent plan, the whole scene reminded him of “Old McDonald’s farm.” (See front page story).

In May, Deputy Prime Minister Philip Davis, had said the project was on time and within budget to begin operations in September. However, Mr Davis noted that at least $7m in additional funding was requested for infrastructure works.

More money — hurry up VAT come to the rescue! However, according to Dr Minnis it is clear the project won’t be completed this year.

It’s just a matter of turning the pages of history back to 1975 to fear for the future of BAMSI. That was the year that the Pindling government took over the once highly successful Hatchet Bay farm at Alice Town, Eleuthera, with Sir Lynden’s hollow boast that it would be “the greatest success story in agriculture in the history of the Bahamas”.

It certainly was the greatest story — but the story was not a success. Government fired all of Hatchet Bay’s scientists and through ignorance destroyed a farm that was supplying Nassau with its milk, ice cream, eggs, chickens and other products.

In the House of Assembly in 1991 then Opposition Leader Hubert Ingraham accused the “incompetent wasteful” Pindling government of having “murdered” the once prosperous Hatchet Bay Farms “in cold blood and in broad daylight.”

Now with the outlay of such large funds for BAMSI, especially with the economy being what it is, it will be a sorry day for the Christie government should history repeat itself.