April 28, 2023 marked the one-year anniversary of the arrest of former BVI Ports Authority Managing Director (MD), Oleanvine Maynard. Yet, to this day, the organisation has not filled the vacant post.
Maynard was arrested in Miami along with former Premier Andrew
Fahie, after a months-long sting operation by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The DEA alleges that the duo was conspiring to traffic cocaine from the BVI to the United States. Maynard is set to appear in a US court soon.
Last year, the BVIPA posted a job vacancy on December 20 — one day after our news team broke the story that no one had been hired to fill the vacancy Maynard left.
BVI News sought answers from the Marketing Director of the BVIPA, Natasha Chalwell this week and she said the organisation is in the process of finding the right person to fill the high-ranking post.
“The BVIPA are currently searching for a new Managing Director. A first round of interviews has already been conducted based on a pool of candidates screened. However, a second round of interviews is required,” Chalwell told our news centre.
She also gave some insight into why the process is taking so long, stating that leaders are interested in finding the best candidate.
“The BVIPA’s Board of Directors is taking the hiring process seriously and wants to ensure that they choose the most suitable candidate for the role. The organisation is committed to finding the best possible candidate for the Managing Director post and is willing to invest the time needed to make an informed decision.”
At the time of Maynard’s arrest, there were public speculations that the post couldn’t be filled because Maynard had not properly resigned. BVI News asked Chalwell whether these reports are true and she said:
“The former MD has been terminated. Therefore, it poses no challenge with this search.”
After Maynard’s arrest, the organisation appointed a new board of directors. In addition to the post of Managing Director, the website shows two other vacant posts on the management team: the Director of Finance and Deputy Chief Financial Officer.