New Paducah Power Systems General Manager Gary Zheng says he isn’t worried about a federal investigation into alleged wrongdoing at his previous job.
The PPS board selected the former CEO of Lubbock Power and Light in Texas last monthfollowing a national search to replacePPS GM Dave Clark.
Media reports indicate Zheng was fired from LP&T’s board in July and that an FBI investigation into rigging project bids is ongoing.
Zheng says he’s aware of the investigation but he’s confident the outcome will be positive.
"All the investigation's sole result is going to be to clear my name, the truth is," said Zheng. "The board of Lubbock Power & Light, they hired a special law firm, which is the former FBI federal attorney. They did all the investigation and found out actually that we did it not only right but we did something according to policy."
Zheng also says his leaving was purely political and that if there was any wrongdoing, he wouldn’t have gotten the new job.
“It’s all political, that’s all I can say," said Zheng. "But if I had done anything like someone claimed, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have gotten the settlement payment either.”
Zheng received a $700,000 settlement in his departure from LP&T. He has a one year contract with PPS for an annual salary of $200,000.
PPS is currently in the middle of a recovery plan to reduce millions of dollars in costswhile reducing rates by mid-2015.
