Former Minister of State for Immigration Elma Campbell is still collecting $42,000 a year from Cable Bahamas Limited as a government-appointed board member despite being charged earlier this year with stealing $1.2M from the Ministry of Tourism.
The government of the day selects three people to sit on CBL’s board as the National Insurance Board is a 20 percent shareholder in Cable Bahamas.
Campbell, a former Ambassador to China and failed Free National Movement candidate, was appointed to the CBL board under the Minnis Administration shortly after it took office in 2017.
However, the 64-year-old was not made to resign after she and her son, Che were charged in the Magistrates Court in March with $1.2 million fraud.
Prosecutors allege the pair falsely obtained the money from the Royal Bank of Canada.
Chase was also charged with possession of a forged document and uttering a forged document.
Prosecutors allege he cashed a forged $1.2 million Ministry of Tourism check that was payable to Campbell Chase Law on September 6th, 2019.
The mother and son were also charged with more than a dozen money laundering charges.
It is alleged that they laundered the funds between September 6th, 2019 and October 16th, 2019 through bank transfers, withdrawals and the purchase of a luxury car.
Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis has not replaced Campbell as a government representative on the Cable Bahamas board despite his election pledge to stamp out corruption.
“The people’s turnaround has begun. We put a stop to rampant corruption, we put a stop to waste and stealing of the people’s money. We put a stop to the descent into economic collapse. We put a stop to the never-ending downgrades,” Minnis said on May 5, 2019.
Minnis has also been silent on questionable behavior of several of his cabinet ministers, including his Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest who has been accused of $20 million fraud, leading political observers to believe his corruption pledge was just a ploy to get elected and seek revenge on political appointments.