Former Minister of Works Neko Grant questioned the competence of the management team at the Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) after paying out tens of millions of dollars in overtime.
Grant said overtime payouts of more than $10 million a year have been a problem at BEC for the past 10 years.
“When it comes to overtime the union has said that it requires the approval of an assistant general manager or above to authorize for the overtime. So again I pose the question: What is management doing? I’m also told, Mr. Speaker, that BEC has failed to implement best practices, a concept that exists in the utility sector.
“Why? Does management lack competence or the will to do these things to bring the cost of electricity down for the Bahamian people? I’ll let the public be the judge.”
In 2012, BEC paid out more than $11.8 million in overtime. An independent audit of overtime billing revealed that in many cases it was impossible for employees to work as many hours as they logged.
Grant’s comments came as the House of Assembly debated a resolution to guarantee BEC’s borrowing of $250 million.
