Members of the Water And Power Authority governing board locked horns Thursday over legal representation for themselves in a lawsuit brought by a St. Croix resident seeking to halt the sale of assets of the public utility. One member stormed out of the meeting on St. Croix, accusing another of spreading false information about the board in the community.
At issue was a call by member Claude "Tappy" Molloy for open discussion of the legal representation issue versus the desire of other members to take the matter up in executive session.
Board member Dean Plaskett, commissioner of Planning and Natural Resources, accused Molloy of using the media to spread false information about the role of cabinet members in the negotiations between Southern Energy and WAPA. "When you all will be making false accusations, I will take the steps necessary to defend myself," Plaskett said as he grabbed his binder of documents and left the meeting.
Gail Watson Chiang contends in her lawsuit against the V.I. government that any agreement between Southern Energy and the administration is illegal because there has been no bidding process opened up to other companies who may be interested in purchasing WAPA assets.
At Thursday's meeting, Molloy questioned the role of attorneys Tom Broas and Derek Hodge in representing the governing board at a court proceeding last week. It was revealed at the meeting that they are the attorneys of record for Winston and Strawn, the governor's legal advisors on the negotiations with Southern Energy.
It was also stated at the meeting that Plaskett had a confrontation with Chiang and her attorney, Lee Rohn, during a court hearing last week and that a Territorial Court marshal had to intervene as Plaskett vehemently denied Rohn's allegation that Southern Energy paid for Plaskett to attend a horse-racing event in Florida.
Also at the meeting, board members unanimously elected former senator Carol Burke as chair, former St. John administrator William Lomax as vice chair, and Licensing and Consumer Affairs Commissioner Andrew Rutnik as secretary. Molloy was named to chair the board's Finance Committee, with Rutnik and former board chair J. Arthur Downing as members. Al Franklin and Plaskett will co-chair its Planning Committee, with Lomax and Housing Parks and Recreation Commissioner Ira Hobson as members.
