The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

WORKS Minister Alfred Sears said he has recused himself from matters relating to the dissolution of Bahamas Power and Light’s previous board.

Before the general election, Mr Sears, a lawyer, represented former BPL chairwoman Darnell Osborne and board members Nicola Thompson and Nick Dean. The three are suing the government and BPL.

Mr Sears’ comments yesterday came a day after Office of the Prime Minister Press Secretary Clint Watson said a report into BPL’s board and procurement activities was sent to the minister for his review.

Speaking to reporters in Grand Bahama, Mr Sears said: “I received a question from a reporter yesterday, in fact it was Travis Cartwright from the Guardian, and he asked me whether I had received a report that had been commissioned by the Office of the Prime Minister and I told him ‘no’ and at the time I hadn’t received a report.

“Any report that would come to me would be sent to the attorney general because clearly in that matter I would be conflicted. I could not deliberate over a matter in which I was a lawyer outside of the government and certainly I have made and had no deliberation in this matter.

“The matter is in the hands of the attorney general and any issue that would come to me in my substantive minister as minister of works I would have to recuse myself,” he said.

The Tribune understands that former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis commissioned an independent investigation into BPL that rejected former Works Minister Desmond Bannister’s characterisation of Darnell Osborne’s acquisition of makeup and home security services when she chaired BPL’s board of directors.

FTI Consulting, the foreign management consulting firm Dr Minnis hired to review matters concerning the dissolution of BPL’s former board, interviewed BPL CEO Whitney Heastie, Executive Director Patrick Rollins and board member Ferron Bethel for its report, according to sources familiar with the document.

The men – all allies of Mr Bannister during the board saga – told investigators claims in the media about Mrs Osborne’s makeup and home security services were misleading; they dismissed the significance of Mrs Osborne’s actions in these areas, well-placed sources said.

It is not clear whether investigators provided a definitive view or took a side on the other matters related to the board’s breakdown. Sources told The Tribune the report’s review largely reflects what the press has reported about how the board grew dysfunctional over time and ultimately disintegrated into two factions amid disagreements over the Shell deal, the roles of various senior members and Mr Bannister’s treatment of the various players. Otherwise, the report mostly focuses on BPL’s procurement policies and practices and takes a critical view of these.