Corrupt Bridge Authority Chairman exposed

Bridge Authority Chairman Greg Bonaby is using his position to issue fat contracts without board approval and allegedly make side deals with contractors in order to receive kickbacks, according to internal documents obtained by The Gallery.

According to the General Manager’s Report to the Bridge Authority’s Board of Directors, Bonaby went behind the board’s back and issued a $22,500 contract to a local company to build the East Paradise Island Bridge Bulkhead Retaining Wall.

The wall is an unimpressive 7 feet 8 inches long, 3 feet high and is too small to retain anything.

Insiders tell The Gallery that 35 8-inch blocks were used to build the useless wall which serves no purpose. That means it cost the Bridge Authority about $630 per square foot to build.

Documents also show that Bonaby is side-stepping the Board of Directors to create projects for the Bridge Authority to pay for then allegedly padding the contracts in order to receive thousands of dollars on the side.

In the month of September alone, a local striping company was paid $58,000 to carry out asphalt repair and remedial paving in a small area covering just 3,760 square feet.

After the company finished its repairs, Bonaby issued a $5,625 “construction cleaning” contract to a cleaning company to remove “dirt and grime” left behind.

According to the General Manager’s report, Bonaby then issued a $35,275 contract to have jersey walls installed on Piers 6 and 7 on Potter’s Cay Dock.

A Jersey wall is a concrete or plastic barrier used to separate lanes of traffic and is designed to minimize vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact.

The BA chairman then paid out $16,813 just for a company to use stencils to spray the words “The Bridge Authority” on those jersey walls, along with a few erected signs.

Board members are upset over Bonaby’s spending habits, which were not approved by them, but feel powerless to stop it due to his political connections.

BA insiders say Minister of Works Desmond Bannister is fully aware of the authority’s corrupt chairman but he has decided to look the other way because Bonaby is the childhood friend of Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis who appointed him to the position.