Bermuda’s telecommunications and electricity watchdog is seeking a full-time chief executive after the departure of Aaron Smith as a stopgap chief executive.

Angela Berry, the chairwoman of the Regulatory Authority of Bermuda, said the overseer body was reviewing a shortlist of permanent candidates for the post.

Established in 2011 by an Act of Parliament, the RAB has since had three chief executives, with each of them leaving before two years on the job.

Philip Micallef was appointed in October 2012 but stepped down in September 2014, citing personal reasons.

A new chief executive, Robert Watson, took the post in January 2015 but left nine months later, also for personal reasons, with legal adviser Kyle Masters taking the helm as interim CEO.

Matthew Copeland was appointed in March 2016 and stepped down in February of this year, with Mr Smith acting in “a short-term consultancy capacity as interim CEO”, Ms Berry said.

She said Mr Smith’s role gave the authority’s board time to determine the “leadership needs of the organisation, which evolve as it takes on new industry sectors”.

“Our selection and recruitment process is now more rigorous than ever and we are confident that the appropriate person will be appointed to lead the authority forward, at this current juncture of its mandate.”

The Royal Gazette understands that the authority’s financial officer left earlier this year.

Ms Berry said the position of financial controller was to be “recruited in the near future” and was being handled by the RA’s internal resources.

She added: “The Regulatory Authority continues to conduct business confidently, efficiently and without disruption.”

The RAB advertised for commissioners in February, with Dion Smith and Mark Fields appointed on May 1, joining Ms Berry, William Francis and Rajnish Barua on the present board of the organisation.

Commissioners are appointed by a selection committee, chaired by the Minister of Legal and Regulatory Affairs, and which includes the labour minister, the Opposition leader or their designate and ministers.