The Tribune

By PAVEL BAILEY

Tribune Staff Reporter

pbailey@tribunemedia.net 

DARNELL Osborne, former chair of the BPL board and two others are in the process of reaching an agreement outside of court with the government.

The process began just before the matter was to be heard in the Supreme Court yesterday.

Attorneys representing Mrs Osborne, Nick Dean and Nicola Thompson confirmed this to The Tribune yesterday.

While Mrs Osborne declined comment yesterday, legal counsel Damian Gomez, QC, and Valentino Hamilton said all concerned were coming to an understanding out of court.

They hope to settle soon.

Mrs Osborne was terminated from BPL during the Minnis Administration in 2018.

That same year, Works Minister Desmond Bannister made damning allegations about her.

After the shakeup of BPL’s board during the Minnis administration, Mr Bannister alleged that he intervened in the operations of the company to stop it from paying Mrs Osborne’s personal bills, including make-up services and the installation of a home security system.

 It was later revealed that the make-up services were for a BPL photoshoot and that other top BPL officials encouraged Mrs Osborne to set up a home security system after another board member mentioned a security incident at his home.

 Mrs Osborne has alleged in her witness statement that she has been subject to enhanced scrutiny and is currently considered a politically exposed person (PEP). She further stated that the ordeal had taken a heavy toll on her family.

 “This experience has affected me gravely in my personal life and relationships. At the time of my removal from the board, I had one child already in university and another one about to enter university. It has taken a toll on my family, on my general health and my mental wellbeing and it is my belief that it has aggravated a dormant heart condition for which I now need to have a hospital procedure in June 2022,” Mrs Osborne said in a witness statement filed in the Supreme Court.

 “I also lost the opportunity to join the group medical plan for retirees at my former place of employment by taking the public position at BPL and BEC. As a result of the actions of Minister Bannister I have lost the benefits of full medical coverage and group medical insurance.”