Opposition spokesman for Industry, Commerce and Energy, Gregory Mair, is calling for Energy Minister Phillip Paulwell to present in Parliament on Tuesday details of his recently announced planned reintroduction of the controversial Cuban light-bulb project.

Mair said the details were needed in light of the fact that the project, which was under Paulwell's watch when he was energy minister in 2006 and 2007, "was plagued by corruption and gross mismanagement".

The controversial project led to charges being laid against Paulwell's then deputy, State Minister Kern Spencer, and his co-accused, Coleen Wright

Spencer and Wright are facing corruption charges after they were accused of benefiting improperly from the Cuban light-bulb programme. The matter is still before the court.

damning report

Mair, in his release to the media yesterday, also pointed to a damning auditor general's report into the matter, tabled in January 2008, which highlighted no written contracts presented for payments which resulted in massive overpayment for management and professional fees, and apparent breaches of the Government's procurement rules.

Paulwell announced last week that there were plans to reintroduce the project as part of a national sensitisation programme on energy conservation. He did not provide a timeline for restarting the programme.

Under the programme, the Government of Jamaica replaces high-energy use incandescent lamps (bulbs) in private residences and public buildings with energy-saving compact fluorescent lamps (bulbs) donated by the Cuban government.