Politics · 20 June 2010 ·
Fnording the BP oil spill
German blogger and fnording specialist Fefe has digged out a couple interesting facts related to BP’s oil desaster. Thus BP’s CEO Tony Hayward has sold BP shares worth £1.4 million weeks before the catastrophe to finish off his mortgage for his house. This alone would not be newsworthy, if BP hadn’t been aware of problems with the Deepwater Horizon already in February. Make of that what you will, although personally I tend to believe in coincidence…
Either way, Hayward claims that he had not been aware of anything whatsoever. The Houston Chronicle has a number of well-entertaining quotes by Mr Hayward:
- “I was not involved in that decision. So it is impossible for me to answer that question.”
- On the money saved with certain well design decisions: “I’m afraid I can’t recall that.”
- On the time saved by some decisions on the well: “I don’t recall that either, I’m afraid.”
These are just three, and Houston Chronicle has some more, if you like. Such things never cease to amaze me. Managers and CEOs of large companies always claim that their extraordinary wages are due to their enormous responsibility they take for the company. Yet when something actually goes wrong they shy away and claim to have not been involved at all. So what are they being paid for, if I may ask? Being blissfully ignorant? Of course a CEO cannot possibly be involved in all decisions, yet at the same time it is his/her responsibility to ensure that his/her subordinates are, and act in a responsible manner. But maybe that is the key to the problem — companies are mainly responsible to their stakeholders, and not the public (or even the environment). Thus, decisions taken try to maximise profitability on the cost of responsibility. Yet at the same time free marketeers claim that we need even less regulation.
The most entertaining quote however is this one:
“With respect […] we drill hundreds of wells around the world,” Hayward told Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas. “Yeah, I know,” Burgess shot back. “That’s what’s scaring me right now.”
And just to keep you entertained, this brilliant sketch by John Clarke and Bryan Dawe:
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