WASHINGTON --- Army Secretary Thomas White said that his goal to implement better business practices will not be deterred by the Enron bankruptcy investigation.
White's goals to get the Army out of the utility business, stop the migration of installation funds and eliminate excess infrastructure will continue to be his focus, he told members of the press March 27 during a media round table at the Pentagon. And only if the Enron investigation becomes a distraction or he senses his "green suiters" are losing faith in his ability, will he step down as the Army's ranking civilian, he said.
"As secretary, I have never done anything whatsoever that could be construed as being favorable to Enron," White said. "I'm proud of what I did at Enron, and I made a lot of money for the company during my 11 years. But when I took over as secretary, I had to recuse myself of any decisions regarding Enron, and I have honored that."
The stock White divested from Enron was not made based on any inside information he had received, and that can be assessed from the money he lost, he said. However, White declined to reveal details about his financial situation.
"I do not want to portray myself as a victim," White said. "However, I'm not a perpetrator. I believed in that company until it filed for bankruptcy."
Since White left Enron about a year ago and became the secretary of the Army, he has pushed for initiatives that would save the Army money -- money that could be re-invested on the soldier. The privatization of utilities has been the slowest initiative to get off the ground, he said.
"I'm very disappointed in the progress that we've made in privatization," White said. "Systems are falling apart, and we don't have the capital to maintain them. We have over 200 systems to privatize, and this [privatization] is not an option."
A program that is being accelerated under White is Transformation Installation Management.
At a garrison commander's conference, White announced that TIM is in its final stages. TIM was designed to streamline the Army's headquarters, and fence funds at the garrison level, according to TIM officials. Base operations funds will be used for base operations services and repairs, and there will be no migration of funds, officials said.
In the midst of the war on terrorism and the need for more soldiers, White said that base reduction and closure will happen. The Army has about 20 percent in excess infrastructure, and the force protection costs to guard them is enormously expensive, he said. Implementation of base closures can be expected in 2005, White said.
