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Attorney General to go public ‘soon’ over BEC bribe

Former Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson.

Former Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson.

As of Wednesday, September 16, 2015

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

ATTORNEY General Allyson Maynard Gibson said yesterday that officials are reviewing the files concerning an alleged bribery of a former member of the Bahamas Electricity Corporation, adding that she will soon go public about the next course of action in the matter.

“The directors on the prosecution side have confirmed to me that the file has been received,” she said. “They are reviewing the file. They will advise whether or not in their view it is complete in terms of the investigations and what steps they propose to be taken.

“I want to reassure the Bahamian people that this matter is being taken very seriously. We are near the end of the road and we would ask them to continue to allow the professionals in the Department of Public Prosecutions to continue doing the excellent work that they are doing.”

Mrs Maynard Gibson said Bahamians will “absolutely” learn the identity of the person accused of accepting a $325,000 bribe from the French power company Alstom SA more than a decade ago.

A source close to the matter suggested to The Tribune yesterday that though the police found cause to prosecute the suspect, the Department of Prosecutions must consider the legal issues relating to the case, such as whether the statute of limitations applies, before deciding whether to prosecute.

The news that Mrs Maynard Gibson will soon go public on the matter comes nearly a year after the US Department of Justice reported that Alstom SA agreed to pay $772 million following allegations that it bribed foreign government officials.

The bribery is related to a widespread scheme involving tens of millions of dollars in bribes to countries around the world, including Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

The Bahamian suspect in the case allegedly accepted $325,000 in bribes to influence Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) contracts to a French company between 1999 and 2003.

The French company hid payments to the Bahamian official, routing them through an American consultant who was a “close personal friend” of one person able to influence the awarding of BEC contracts.

Following the revelation last year, former Deputy Prime Minister Frank Watson, who at the time had the electricity corporation in his portfolio, expressed “difficulty” with the situation.

Mr Watson has maintained that he was unaware of any controversy surrounding the purchase of the generator, or the events that allegedly took place between 1999 and 2001 when the Free National Movement was in office.

Comments

TruePeople 9 years, 3 months ago

B--- Please!

"The bribery is related to a widespread scheme involving tens of millions of dollars in bribes to" most Bahamian officals

Romrok 9 years, 3 months ago

"Soon" should be a registered trademark for the PLP

Honestman 9 years, 3 months ago

If it is not in the PLP's interest to go public on this then it will be swept under the carpet as usual. This AG lost all credibility long time ago.

B_I_D___ 9 years, 3 months ago

Not much is in the PLP's best interest these days!!

realfreethinker 9 years, 3 months ago

The only chance we will hear the name is if he or she is not a plp.

asiseeit 9 years, 3 months ago

It has already been stated that the FNM was the government so it would be a good bet that the slime is FNM. Whoever it is they should go after their money, hit them where it really hurts.

jackbnimble 9 years, 3 months ago

I cannot listen to her. Makes me want to throw up every time she talks. Scum characters = Scum Government.

realfreethinker 9 years, 3 months ago

Does that look like a face you can trust ????

asiseeit 9 years, 3 months ago

It seems the majority of politicians need to spend some time as a guest of the HMP Fox Hill. It also seems that the Politicians of this country are not honorable nor upstanding but actually the scum of the nation. The damage these nefarious miscreants called politicians have done to The Bahamas is beyond reckoning. Whenever they come of the T.V. i point them out as the true criminals and scourge that no person in their right mind should elevate or aspire to emulate. Pure slime, lower than pond scum!

TalRussell 9 years, 3 months ago

Comrade Attorney General Allyson, no needs makes we's public waits no damn stenographer be typing up no report - just release the "alleged" crooked red shirts photo on da milk cartons. Holy shi#, isn't that so and so picture on milk carton? We all be rushing Super Values, buys we milk. Best you stocks up on da milks, Rupert. Keeping mines as souvenir of justice longs overdue.

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2015…

sheeprunner12 9 years, 3 months ago

Can we expect another Nolle??????????? ................ or Rubisgate???????? or VAGnoncase???

MonkeeDoo 9 years, 3 months ago

We really need a wiki-leaks Bahamian Patriot right now !

happyfly 9 years, 3 months ago

She wont go public with it. She knows She has got the FNM by the balls and she will sit on this dirty little secret and use it to shush them right up until the next general elections, and then blow the top off it.

The only way for this mistake to not get any bigger is for the FNM to admit they f...ed up and start cleaning up the mess now or we got zero chance of turning this little countries nosedive around in 2017

God knows we do need a real patriot

Stapedius 9 years, 3 months ago

Why has this become about her? The larger concern for Bahamians is the disgusting level of corruption in this country. It is across the board, regardless of political affiliation. I don't care who was in power when it happened, the fact that it happened and continues to happen is what is sickening. What's the big secret anyway? If there is evidence to support the accusations then pursue it just as you would any other case. The political class get away with too much sh#! in the country.

sansoucireader 9 years, 3 months ago

"What's the big secret anyway?" My thoughts exactly! Will releasing the name result in some big change in history? These politicians all related to each other by blood or marriage and they all cover for each other. They've got their own little cliques, that we're not part of, and really aren't interested in our welfare. When they develop one of our 700 islands & cays as a prison island, is when I know they're serious about doing something about crime in the Bahamas; we'll need the space for all of these crooked MPs, politicians etc.

countryfirst 9 years, 3 months ago

Please go public on all backroom and underhand dealings you and your colleagues are apart of then we would be satisfied.

countryfirst 9 years, 3 months ago

Send them all to jail starting in the House of Assembly.

iamcitizen 9 years, 3 months ago

Madam Attorney General is at best disingenuous and her response a puerile obfuscation. I am confident that citizens have tuned her out. Thankfully she will demit office soon.

As for the source close to the matter suggesting, “ Prosecutors must consider the legal issues relating to the case such as whether the statute of limitations applies….” is astounding as this would ordinarily have been determined prior to embarking on an investigation, for obvious reasons.

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2015…

ThisIsOurs 9 years, 3 months ago

Where is Damian Gomez?

Emac 9 years, 3 months ago

Hiding, watching and waiting. He already put his foot in his mouth too many times. My guess is he is trying to concoct some other BS to bring to the public to try and regain his credibility. But it's too late, the damage has already been done!

Cobalt 9 years, 3 months ago

No no no people. Alyson Maynard and the PLP think they're slick!

What they're attempting to do is drag this out as long as they can so that they can use this scandal as political leverage during the next general elections! They want it fresh in the minds of the electorate in 2017 hoping that it will give them a political advantage.

sheeprunner12 9 years, 3 months ago

Someone please print the NINE names of the BEC board back then and lets figure it out ....... Chairman Mr. J Barry Farrington ............................... and the others????????????

Emac 9 years, 3 months ago

As requested by sheeprunner12, the link below provides a pdf file of all of the members that sat on the Board of BEC at the time the alleged bribery took place http://www.bahamaselectricity.com/_medi…

sheeprunner12 9 years, 3 months ago

Thanks Emac .......... seven names are there: Chairman J Barry Farrington, Loretta Butler Turner, Philip Beneby, Sharon Brown, Brian Moree, Wendy Warren and William McDonald ........ which one got the money???? Just scrub their financial records over the period in question...WHISTLEBLOWER

Emac 9 years, 3 months ago

https://www.traceinternational2.org/com… Are we getting hot yet???

TruePeople 9 years, 3 months ago

The identities of those involved are not contained in the court documents, which refer to the Bahamian as ‘Official 8’ and the US citizen who Alstom funnelled the bribes through as ‘Consultant I’.

The only clues to the Bahamian’s identity are assertions that they were a BEC Board member, and that they were appointed to oversee the generator tender process by the-then chairman, Mr Farrington. (the trace international states that it was also a male)

Mr Farrington yesterday said he could not remember who he appointed, but said the details contained in the plea agreement seemed very specific and genuine.

....

Apart from Mr Farrington, they included former FNM deputy leader, Loretta Butler-Turner; Brian Moree QC, senior McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes senior partner; former Bahamas Financial Services Board chief executive, Wendy Warren; ex-CIBC FirstCaribbean managing director, Sharon Brown; and late businessman, Vince D’Aguilar (who resigned over the decision to select Alstom).

All are regarded as incorruptible, outstanding Bahamians. And, in turn, the then-Board unanimously voted to give the contract to Alstom’s rival, Hanjung, a strange act if one of them had been bribed.

Emac 9 years, 3 months ago

The person was not necessarily a BEC Board member, but a friend of someone who held a key position. This person had no knowledge of the power industry, but was involved with the exportation of chemicals and sold used furniture at the time. Hmmm....My bet is that this person was only the mediator in the deal, similar to a certain politician who was accused of overseeing the ambulance driver's blackmail payment in Freeport, during the John Travolta debacle.

ThisIsOurs 9 years, 3 months ago

Can anyone provide the definition of "soon" please?

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