The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune

About three days after the storm, a BEC/BPL assessment person came to my area to look at downed wires.

I saw a humble face, embossed with beads of sweat. He seemed so tired that he did not have the capacity to even wipe away the sweat that was periodically dripping into his eyes, because he knew he would have to build up the strength to repeat the action many times over.

In times of disaster we look for someone to blame, because if we can find that someone, we believe we can get relief. All we want is relief. Relief to shower, to use bathroom facilities, to occupy the kids, to turn on a fan. We just want bloody relief.

When we say there are no trucks to be seen, it is because the presence of a truck gives us hope for the return to normalcy. But the unintended assertion is that if we don’t see a truck, there must not be any trucks anywhere.

I will absorb the venom from those who are in their thirteenth day of the “dark” ages at the time of this post, but I would rather absorb the anger than have it channelled to those that are working doggedly to make the angry whole again.

BEC is a near century old bankrupt entity. Matthew or no Matthew, it is akin to inheriting a fleet of taxis from Cuba. You just never know when it is going to break down. The fact that the US has normalised relations with Cuba does not improve the fleet overnight, because there is no money to buy new cars.

Prior to Matthew’s snarling ravage through the Bahamas, BEC was an antiquated entity, with poorly maintained equipment, and management that was hindered by political interference. It was and is broke. The installation of new rental generators was only just beginning to allow for the refurbishment of some of the old generating plant.

But there was one asset that BEC had that remained in place. The worker. I have long hit hard at these men and women, who some would say have the best compensation package of all government entities, but when it comes to what we are being confronted with, they are there for us. I probably will be angry again when they try a Christmas strike as leverage to get what they want, but this is not the time. They are busting their butts and someone has to say it.

Reports are coming out that say that despite the anger, these men and women refuse to stop working. Only this past Sunday’s torrential rain stopped them, as some of them wanted to press on in near suicidal conditions.

Yes , those who are without power have every single right they can muster up to be angry. Angry at the inconvenience, Angry at successive governments that have allowed for the inefficient provision of energy to wreak havoc on our economy and our pockets, and angry at the sense of “powerlessness” we feel, but please do not channel any anger at the men and women who in this moment are working so hard that the beads of sweat blend into each other seamlessly.

We will learn from this and hopefully the biggest lesson is how political mismanagement for generations can so severely and cruelly impact our lives.

ED FIELDS

Nassau,

November 8, 2016.