Since last May I have been trying to explain to people why I felt compelled to leave WAPA and a promising career there. Some WAPA employees have even told me straight-up that my decision to leave was a mistake. Well now even the Inspector General of the Virgin Islands understands why I felt the need to distance myself from WAPA and its management. The Inspector General has finally completed his investigation of theft of WAPA's electric and water services and has documented his findings in a 61 page audit report available on the website of the Virgin Islands Inspector General. It demonstrates that a considerable portion of the theft of WAPA's service was done with WAPA's knowledge, and in many cases, with the permission and assistance of WAPA employees. It is this kind of stomach-churning, internal corruption that I have been personally privy to over the past several years. But in order to toe the company line I was unable to openly speak out against it, just like many other current WAPA managers are unable to speak out against it right now.
I remember sitting in a conference room in St. Thomas a few years ago, just prior to the start of this investigation, and asking why doesn't WAPA make its tampering chargers stiffer. I even suggested that repeat and chronic offenders be prevented from applying for future service in their name; that they be forced to have someone else vouch for the integrity of their account. To this day I have not gotten a straight answer other than the fact that we can't stop people from acquiring electrical service. When I asked why we don't pursue criminal penalties on repeat offenders I was told that the court system takes too long to process the cases. I openly questioned why we were rewarding employees with a $100 to report cases of illegal tampering when it was their job to identify such incidents. I wondered why instead we weren't firing those employees that failed to report cases of tampering. For example, it has been commonly rumored for years among WAPA employees that Sunshine Mall has been stealing power. Yet, despite the pervasiveness of this rumor, employees have been unwilling over the years to produce evidence to support their allegations, preferring it seems to leave their claims unsubstantiated in the realm of rumors and innuendo. But these were the kind of ignorant questions that showed off my youthful inexperience. That is why WAPA quickly chases away any employee that has not been properly "indoctrinated" into WAPA's corporate culture.
From the time I stepped foot into WAPA in 1995, I have heard that the Revenue Protection Department was a main culprit in the prevalent theft of WAPA's service. It was described as putting the fox to guard the hen house. But because of a healthy dose of unwarranted respect for some employees in that department and a healthy dose of unwarranted fear of other employees in that department, WAPA's management has refused to take any action against Revenue Protection. The former department of Organizational Efficiency was on the verge of launching a task force to scrutinize the Revenue Protection Department when it was disbanded two years ago. The Revenue Protection Manager who was known for running a tight ship over the Revenue department on St. Thomas, was given authority over Revenue Protection on St. Croix in order to whip it into shape. He was promptly relieved of that authority shortly after the incident documented in the IG's report, where a WAPA manager was allegedly caught tampering illegally with a meter. I have been hearing for years that several members of the Revenue Protection Department were under investigation for suspicion of illegal activities, nothing has ever come of this investigation --- regardless of what the IG may think. That is why me and several other managers could not wipe the puzzled look off our faces for weeks after we were told that the current Executive Director was rehiring the retired former Manager of Revenue Protection on St. Croix. This is the same individual that oversaw that department as it developed its infamous reputation for inefficiency, ineffectiveness, and shady dealings.
Trust me, the IG only scratched the surface. The mismanagement runs deeper. Wait until they discover those managers that routinely fudge numbers in their operational reports. Or those "supervisors" that manufacture overtime for themselves and their subordinates. Or the frequent violation of WAPA's own hiring policies by the highest levels of management. That is why I had to laugh when WAPA's own internal auditor conducted a seminar on fraud and ethics at the last WAPA board retreat. He and his department have personally witnessed all types of violations of ethics and incidents of fraud since he has been there. But very few employees have ever been fired as a result.
What's worse is that only a handful of WAPA's managers are sufficiently competent to correct these administrative and managerial failings, and those managers are the ones that the Executive Director favors the least. Managers are not promoted in WAPA based on their demonstrated administrative and managerial skills, they are promoted based on how long they have been able to tolerate the bullshit issues. So while Bruno runs around throwing a celebration for every piece of equipment that he installs, the corporate culture of the company continues to decay. Let's try giving him a $100 bonus every time he does his job!
Governor Charles Turnbull delivered the State of the Territory Address tonight. It was the usual yada yada yada. He definitely did not perspire as much this year as he has in the past, so I conclude that the state of the territory must be improving. On Saturday, Governor Turnbull will celebrate his 70th birthday. Of the 55 governors in the United States --- that includes all fifty states and the five territories --- he is the third oldest. Only governors Frank Murkowski of Alaska, 71, and Ruth Ann Minner of Delaware, 70, are older. Governor Minner turned 70 on January 17th. For the record, Governor Matt Blunt of Missouri is the youngest sitting governor in the United States at 34 years of age.
