ALTHOUGH he served in the police force for fewer than 40 years and as Commissioner of Police for fewer than ten years, outgoing Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade will receive maximum pension benefits because the Minnis Administration intends to amend the Pension Act, Attorney General Carl Bethel confirmed yesterday.

“We are bringing legislation to amend the Pensions Act to capture and formalize what occurred in the 1980s where Richard Demeritte, the auditor general at the time, was permitted to complete his pensionable time while serving as High Commissioner to the Court of St James (United Kingdom). That practice allowed him to complete his pensionable years in that capacity.”

Under current law, Mr Greenslade would not be entitled to maximum benefits, a fact former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham suggested in The Nassau Guardian several weeks ago was a point of dispute between him and the Minnis administration even after he had agreed to step down as Commissioner.

“The commissioner of police is not now entitled to the maximum pension which a commissioner of police who served for 10 years would receive, as he will not be in office for 10 years for another three years,” Mr Ingraham told National Review.

“Secondly, he does not yet have 40 years of service as a policeman, which would also have given him the maximum pension which he would get as ten years of service as commissioner. And I understand that he is quite willing to step down, if the government honours what they promised him, which was that he will receive his full benefits as a commissioner of police as a retirement benefit, and that hasn’t happened yet. I think the law needs to be amended for it to happen. Under current law, he is not entitled to it. He would be foolish––and I use that word advisedly––to retire without receiving his maximum benefit.”

The Pensions Act says powerful appointees like the Commissioner of Police who have served in the public service for a minimum of 40 years or in the public service for a minimum of 25 years and at least 10 years in a Permanent Secretary-like position are, upon retirement, entitled to a “pension at a rate of one seven hundred and twentieth of that person’s pensionable emoluments in respect of each completed month of pensionable service as if that person had served for a period of 40 years, save that the pension payable to that person pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed two thirds of the highest pensionable emoluments paid to that person during his period of service in the public service.”

Last week, the Minnis Administration announced that Mr Greenslade has been appointed High Commissioner of the Bahamas to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and as Permanent Representative to the International Maritime Organization.

He was referred to in the press release as “former commissioner” although the government had not previously announced his resignation.

Some in the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and the Free National Movement (FNM) have privately expressed concern about the handling of his departure. It has not yet been accompanied with the pomp and pageantry typical for departing commissioners and, some senior PLPs contend, the Minnis Administration hasn’t duly explained why it wants Mr Greenslade removed. The PLP has not been characteristically vocal about Mr Greenslade’s treatment, however, because sources in the party say the former commissioner has asked its representatives not to do so. 

Mr Greenslade’s appointment to the High Commissioner’s post came after months of speculation and concerns about the effect questions on his future had on the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF).