Rick Lowe
According to family and friends in Abaco their electricity is off as much as it is on these days.
Second home owners and tourists are apparently leaving before their stay is over and businesses are being impacted rather dramatically.
I'm told that it's a triple whammy:
- Business is down as a result of the recession anyway
- Business is slowed even further when one can't get promised work finished as a result of no power, and
- The increased tax burden is knocking them out
Someone in senior management at BEC needs to take a hold of this issue and resolve it.
I understand BEC tried to take over the Spanish Wells power plant & thank God they did not.BEC can’t run you know what down hill !
I heard that those Abaconians are being punished for fighting against the new power plant??? That’s what I heard but I have no idea…
I still can’t understand why Leon Williams was fired from a profitable company under his leadership because (they say that) we were getting ‘too much drop calls’ and Basden still has his job with all the power cuts all over the place and the company is in the red!!! This still puzzles me…
I understand reporters from The Tribune and Guardian are coming over next week for interviews, will it make a difference? I doubt it. It seems our Prime Minister has turned his back on his own island. It was few Bahamians that fought the Bunker C plant to begin with, mostly 2nd home-owners, that have the option to close their homes and leave if the power is unsatisfactory. We don’t have the option to go anywhere else, Neither do we have the money to pay the rate increase that we’re experiencing because of the switch to diesel, and the new plant isn’t even operational yet!!! I will say this, it will be a loooonnng time before South Abaco elects a FNM representative again! This government can’t run our Country, yet they continue to try to run everything else, i.e.; Batelco, B.E.C, Bahamasair, Hotels etc. We’re so broke – we can’t even Pay Attention!!
… with everything that has and is transpiring in this country today…
I sometimes wonder if “Papa” even thinks he can get re-elected??!!
I don’t think “papa” wants to be re-elected, I really don’t.That is why he is doing what he is, its a way out for him, it can’t be anything else, he’s to much a political tiger to not know whats going on.Its a shame he is trying to ruin it all for the FNM in my opinion.God knows are alternatives are grim at best.I vote for McCartney for PM, at least he was trying to do the right thing & you can’t say that about any of the others.
Sorry guys, I don’t buy into the grand conspiracy to intentionally screw things up.
I think all this is a result of thirty years of unintended consequences of believing politicians have all the answers for us.
What do you think the politico’s and other people would be saying if BEC were owned by a private company?
Rick: If BEC was privately owned the politicians would be DEMANDING results, maybe even to the point of trying to get rebates for the consumers. Now the shoe is on their feet and all they do is ignore the voting public until election time. The sad thing about current affairs is that the other guys are worse.. Can you imagine them being in control at this time? Sad state of affairs this country is in when the current politicians are compared the those who are worse than themselves instead of some that are better.
Its a shame really, the potential is so great but yet they continue to blow it.We now have private radio, why not private everything else the government has their paws on.It seems to be working for radio & I think it would be the same for anything else.Nothing will keep prices down more than competition.What ever any government touches will not work, or be efficient in anyway what so ever,this we know for sure so why keep doing it ? For people that are supposed to be so smart, they sure are making some dumb moves on both sides.Why not at least try & do whats best for the country & not for themselves which is apparently what they are doing.Think about it, all they continue to do is causing all costs on everything to go up.As a business, you have to pay an absorbent license fee, then 45% duty on top of that, plus shipping & now $75.00 for every truck that comes off the dock & you wonder why a case of paper towel is $69.00 ? I vote for a flat rate income tax, this duty thing is bull.
And it continues… to get worse. The good people of Abaco who have supported the FNM forever are enduring hardship without electricity. Yesterday July 20th. power was off in the business area from around 10 a.m. until after 5 p.m. Word on the street is that one of the new generators is ready to begin commissioning…low and behold the unsuccessful PLP candidate for South Abaco in the last election is the supplier of diesel to BEC and he is not delivering because, as rumor has it he has not been paid for a long time. As is in most cases government owned entities have been for a long time staffed by PLP’s and it is not in their best political interest to care what happens to those of other political persuasions. Time to step up Mr. Prime Minister and Mr. Key, see that the people of Abaco who you are supposed to serve are taken care of.
I can’t understand for the life of me why a delegation from the multiple communities of Abaco have been to see the appropriate authorities here on New Providence.
Have the people lost their independent streak?
Rick: There was a time when ‘Conians would be screaming. I think they will now reflect their disgust come 2012. Problem is the choices are slim to nothing. Many will not vote, some communities are already campaigning to protest by not voting at all.
Heard that now businesses will have to pay for any truck removing freight from the docks. I wonder where it will all end.
Rick:
Do any of the politicians on both sides read this Blog? Surely if they did they would speak out or respond like others… On second thought maybe they are like the ostrich (head in sand or up some where else).
We get between 200 to 300 readers a day most week days.
Who they are I don’t know.
Abaconians, where are your two representatives? In your hour of need have they forsaken you? I understand that if they visit Abaco now it is from the airport to their hideaway and back to Nassau or some other island. I tried some of the party officials in Abaco to see if they knew where their representatives were and they were unable to tell me.
NEWS FLASH, today BEC flew in some oil for the generators because their supplier will not give them any more credit.
Oh what a sad state the island of Abaco must be in, hot summer, no electricity, tourist gone, next election BEC crack Ingraham and Key gone.
Further Investigations re BEC in Abaco.
My information is that a LONG time FNM had asked if BEC was going to truck fuel for the new power station he wanted an opportunity to bid. (I am told he runs a trucking company and provides excellent service but I was unable to speak with him since he was off the island on Tuesday). The word on the street is that he was never given the chance to bid. Allegedly the contract was HANDED out to someone else who does not even have any equipment. Seems Abacos contracts get done like this as far back as the Great Abaco Highway one which was handed to a “contractor” who did not even have a wheelbarrow. The one thing when comparing the PLP and the FNM, the PLP takes care of their own. The FNM just does not “Take Care.”
So true, they do take care of their own.Maybe its because Ingraham is a PLP at heart & was “brought up” under daddy Pindling.
I just spoke to someone in Abaco they tell me that the tourists are packing up & leaving the Island.They also said that out of fourteen generators, nine, yes nine are broken down.This is an absolute disgrace.What is wrong with these idiots that are supposed to be running these things ? Something is not right, its just not right.
Word out of Abaco is that a peaceful demonstration is planned in front of BEC offices in Marsh Harbour on Friday….Will either of the MP’s for Abaco be in attendance? Will they address the residents and have an explanation about BEC? The voters were there for you in 2007, why have you not addressed your constituents? Why no explanation? Do you care?
Dear GQ:
The distress of the Abaco people is palpable.
It is peculiar that there has been no sustained PR effort by BEC or the political representatives to let you know what is going on.
If it’s any consolation our power has been off now for about an hour and a half.
Admittedly outages here have not been very frequent lately.
Good luck tomorrow.
Somebody, anybody report on the demonstration Friday against the lack of electricity in Abaco. Was either of your representatives there? Bet you the one for North Abaco will be at the power boat races planned in his constituency this week end.
You know Ingraham and Key were trained by the late, great Sir L.O.P.
Saw a video on a friends Facebook page last night but could not get a copy to post.
The P.M. is now blaming a BEC employee for destroying an engine by running it without oil. If a mechanic ran the engine without oil he/she is to blame for that. They should not have started the engine if there was no oil. Who do you blame for there being no oil? The mechanic? The supplier? The person who orders? The person who is supposed to make the payments? The person who is supposed to have the dollars to pay the bills? Ultimately the buck stops just like the generator did!
Who suffers? The good citizens of Abaco. Who cares????
I understand from a contact in Abaco that the power cuts are less than the previous several weeks. Rumour has it that even though the new generators will soon be operational a new feeder line needs to be built from the new station to connect with the existing distribution at the old power house. Estimates on this being complete is the end of 2010. My question is why was this not done simultaneous to the construction of the new plant? Why is there no proper planning when the government goes about doing anything? They sure know how to plan to raise taxes!
They sure do know how to raise taxes & we the people have had enough ! When I see them at least trying to cut back ie ZNS,Bahamasair etc, then maybe I will think they are serious about it, until then, they can go scratch.
Here we are the 1st day of August. 8 out of 16 generators are running. BEC is generating approx. 17MW (it is hard to be absolutely certain because the condition of the generators may actually lower the number). Abaco’s demand is about 19MW – especially now that our hotels and marinas are practically empty. Power is improving, but the question most people have on their mind is how long until another generator fails? With them all running near or at full load, it’s only a matter of time.
The PM, while visiting said he would get a rental generator on the island the following week (I knew it was highly unlikely) it has not arrived and there has been no info released to say it’s coming.
What has happened in Abaco is criminal. I am still waiting for those heads to roll. And I agree with the post that stated BTC’s manager was fired after a short period of small problems, however, Basden still steers this out of control sinking ship of BEC and it seems he is secure.
There is so much to be said about this entire debacle, but suffice it to say, we have two MP’s who failed. the PM did finally show up 1 day after the protest, and his promises were great but too late! I won’t mention MR. Key because he is not worth mentioning. This was an occasion for the government to shine, show how great they are, but they failed miserably and the economy of Abaco will suffer long beyond this summer because of it!