By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

Anti-corruption campaigners yesterday said the corporate governance issues raised by the Bahamas Power and Light (BPL) Boardroom battle create major transparency concerns.

Lemarque Campbell, of Citizens for a Better Bahamas, the local Transparency International contact, told Tribune Business: "All of the concerns surrounding political interference, conflict of interest and not following strict corporate governance practices affect all of us as residents and taxpayers who have to deal with the unreliable service and exorbitant costs from BPL.

"These concerns do give a perception that the management and public procurement processes of Bahamian state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are not transparent at all. With this lack of transparency this raises a lot of red flags, as it basically paves the way for increased corrupt activity which causes the taxpayer to suffer in the long run."

Mr Campbell said this was evident in the Alstom case initiated by the US under its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), which exposed bribes that were paid in relation to the procurement of generation engines by the Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC).

"Therefore, SOEs have to be very careful as to the perception they give off, especially as they contract with a lot of international companies. The perception of any corruption in public procurement, or the potential to influence the decision-making process, would alarm the compliance departments of multinational corporations that deal directly with our SOEs, especially those tied to the US and subjected to the FCPA," Mr Campbell said.

"The FCPA would cover any of the following entities or persons conducting business in the Bahamas: Any American person or business; any American or foreign public companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States or which are required to file periodic reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission; as well as certain foreign persons and businesses.

"The most important aspect of the FCPA is that even though it's US legislation it has extra-territorial reach, meaning it would be triggered once any one of these these entities or persons find themselves involved in any corrupt activity in the Bahamas."

Mr Campbell added: "We must ensure that qualified and competent individuals are appointed to every government Board, and given the mandate to govern those boards independently without fear of any influence, following strict corporate governance practices, and making prudent decisions to benefit the shareholders, which are essentially us, the Bahamian taxpayers and resident investors."