‘It doesn’t smell good’

Pressure is mounting on Speaker of the House of Representatives Juliet Holness and her deputy, Heroy Clarke, to table an investigation report that was sent to Parliament by the Integrity Commission (IC) on January 22.

Despite a ruling by Holness on November 7 last year that investigation reports from the IC would be tabled “as soon as possible” and then sent to the IC Oversight Committee, the latest investigation report from the anti-corruption body is yet to be tabled.

Justice Seymour Panton (Ret’d), chairman of the Integrity Commission, said that when the anti-corruption body sends an investigation report to Parliament, he expects it to be tabled “as soon as possible”.

At the same time, Robert Stephens, co-chairman of the Advocates Network, said it was absurd that the parliamentary leadership should delay the tabling of an IC report, noting that it sends the wrong signal that they have something to hide.

When Julian Robinson, member of parliament for St Andrew South East, asked Deputy Speaker of the House Heroy Clarke on Tuesday whether the report would be tabled, Clarke said he could not provide an answer at that time.

“As to the question you have raised as it relates to the IC, I am not in a position to give an answer to that. I will investigate as best as possible, and if be (sic), I will bring back the information to the House of Parliament. I will give an answer as soon as it is with me,” Clark said.

The week before, when Holness presided and was asked a similar question, she said: “The ruling of the Speaker stands. Please refer to the ruling as it relates to the tabling of all reports from the commission.”

In her ruling on November 7, 2023, Holness said: “Reports of the director of investigations submitted under Section 54(4) will be tabled as soon as possible after receipt by Parliament having regard to the serious nature of the matters that are contained thereon. It will require the immediate and direct attention of the House. After it is tabled, it will then be submitted to the Integrity Commission Oversight Committee for their consideration and report.”

She also indicated that all reports from the Integrity Commission would be reviewed by officers of the House before they are tabled.

The House has had two sittings since the investigation report was received by Parliament.

The IC chairman said the anti-corruption body was not aware of any impediment to the tabling of its report.

“As far as the commission is concerned, when we send a report to the House of Parliament we expect it to be tabled as soon as possible, and for us, as soon as possible means just that - as soon as possible,” he said in a Gleaner interview.

The IC chairman also questioned the thinking behind sending an investigation report to the IC Oversight Committee.

“I don’t know what purpose that would serve because our reports are not capable of being edited by anyone,” he declared.

Further, he made it clear that the IC Oversight Committee “cannot properly or legally stop the tabling of the report”.

Stephens urged Jamaicans to demand that reports from the IC be made available to Parliament, and, by extension, the public.

“It is absurd that anybody, including the Speaker of the House, should be delaying the laying of those documents in front of Parliament and exposing them to the entire country.”

He reasoned that the entire approach the Government is taking to the IC and reports from the auditor general is indicative of a government that is trying to hide something. “Why are they trying to hide these reports? It doesn’t smell good.”

Stephens said IC reports are like the proverbial sword of Damocles hanging over the head of every politician.

The IC revealed in its annual report last year that six parliamentarians were being investigated for illicit enrichment. The IC cannot divulge the names of the persons under investigation until a report is tabled in Parliament as they are prohibited by a gag clause in the law.

Jamaica failed to improve its score of 44 on Transparency International’s 2023 Corruption Perception Index. The country also remains at 69 out of 180 countries in terms of its ranking.

In its report that was released on Tuesday, Transparency International said collusion among the powerful in Jamaica, as well as the “overwhelming dominance of the executive over the legislature, has weakened Parliament’s oversight capabilities, creating conditions ripe for abuse and corruption”.

Transparency International also said that the “executive’s failure to close gaps in the governance framework weakens the pursuit of corruption cases involving organised crime and fosters impunity of high-level corrupt elites”.

edmond.campbell@gleanerjm.com