BPSU says prove it or apologize
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — An internal audit, which revealed: “some gaps in the controls” related to finance officers, showed that some finance officers adjusted the system to ensure their pay rates were increased to the tune of a combined $4 million, according to Minister of State for the Public Service Pia Glover-Rolle.
“What has happened is those finance officers have adjusted the system to ensure that their pay rates were increased based on an approval that they would have gotten, that we have not in the public service had any approval or vision of,” she told the media at the Office of the Prime Minister.
“So, basically normal government procedure in terms of adjusting the pay scales was not observed.
“This resulted in an overpayment of $4 million-plus by that same scale of employees where the system would have been adjusted in their favor without the proper government procedures.
“So, at this time, the Ministry of Public Service and the Ministry of Finance are meeting to figure out how we are going to address this administration of scales that was not properly authorized.
“The normal policy of overpayment is recovery.”
In a separate interview, Bahamas Public Service Union (BPSU) President Kimsley Ferguson, who was flanked by dozens of finance and accounting officers, said he was very concerned about the statement, which he said gave the impression that “the persons charged with keeping the public purse are dishonest individuals”.
Today we challenge the minister to either prove what she’s saying or to retract her statements.
We challenge her that where the allegations were made, that is the very same domain that she must make her public apology to these hardworking public servants.
“And so we also want to challenge the minister, if these persons were illegally or unauthorized paid, then we expect that someone who committed this breach would be disciplined.
He said the union is “not here to play politics” and those responsible must either be brought before the courts or disciplined appropriately.
However, Ferguson said he will not allow hardworking public servants to be defamed.
Meanwhile, Glover-Rolle said consequences will follow, including possible legal action and recovery of those funds.
The umbrella union has expressed concern about the government being unable to fulfill its promises related to financial matters.
But the minister disagreed.
She said the country’s financial state has been very transparent “and to say that the government isn’t living up to what we promise, we didn’t promise anything, other than to handle the outstanding matters and we’re doing that”.
Ungrateful
Glover-Rolle said it would be unfortunate in the union took industrial action, noting that various leaders have not had any interaction with the government because the previous administration did not allow it, but that has since changed.
“In the last eight and a half months, we’ve met with, spoken with, communicated with union presidents across the country via phone, in-person meetings, messages, and emails,” the minister said.
“So, the dialog is happening. We’re back at the table in terms of our labor relations unit bringing the industrial relations agreements back to the table finally.
“You know, it’s been a long time coming for that.
According to Glover-Rolle, many of the agreements have expired.
The Labor Relations Unit was completed in October 2021.
Addressing suggestions that there has been a lack of communication or progress, Glover-Rolle said these assertions were “ungrateful because the same public servants are doing the work that our employees and the unions’ members do to ameliorate longstanding matters that haven’t been touched in years”.
She said hundreds of matters have been resolved, but thousands more need to be addressed.
The minister made clear that the government is committed to labor matters, but said she will not “get up and look outside the window every time someone throws a stone” because she continued to do the work.
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