Speaker signals imminent tabling of IC report despite previous ruling

In an apparent reversal of her November 2023 ruling, House Speaker Juliet Holness has signalled that the Integrity Commission’s (IC) 2023-2024 annual report will be tabled next Tuesday “in accordance with established procedures and protocols”.

A terse media release from Parliament on Thursday said the Houses of Parliament had received copies of the report.

On November 7, 2023, Holness ruled that annual and special reports from the anti-corruption body would go to its oversight committee for deliberation before being tabled.

Commenting on annual reports submitted under Section 36 (2) of the Integrity Commission Act, the Speaker said: “Once the report is submitted to Parliament, it will be sent to the Integrity Commission Oversight Committee for consideration and report. Once the committee has completed its deliberations, both the reports of the committee and the relevant report from the Integrity Commission will be tabled thereafter.”

Principal director of National Integrity Action, Danielle Archer, told The Gleaner that she was pleased that the annual report is to be tabled on the first sitting of Parliament after being submitted.

“We hope that this will apply to all reports from the IC,” she added.

Archer argued that the return to tabling IC annual reports in line with long-standing parliamentary practice was a response to a justifiable public outcry to the infamous ruling of the House Speaker.

She commended “citizens of goodwill” and members of civil society organisations who spoke out against the controversial ruling by the Speaker and insisted that the long-standing practice of tabling IC reports promptly be restored.

“The restoration of this practice encourages our citizens to speak out when there is a perceived wrong in the conduct of the authorities,” Archer noted.

YIELDED TO CALLS

In March, Speaker Holness yielded to unrelenting calls from members of civil society and the parliamentary Opposition and tabled two reports from the auditor general that Parliament held for more than two months.

Prior to their tabling, the Speaker had returned the Auditor General’s Department reports, following which the auditor general sent them back to Parliament.

In April, the Speaker laid on the table of the House the attorney general’s opinion on the tabling of reports from the Integrity Commission and Auditor General’s Department, following months of wrangling.

Archer argued that it was extremely disappointing to realise that the opinion of the attorney general contradicting the erroneous decree of the House Speaker was available to her over a prolonged period, during which time a long-standing public servant was publicly reprimanded for allegedly not complying with a flawed directive.

“A retraction of the public reprimand is warranted on the facts and actions now in the public domain,” Archer said.

Former Clerk to the Houses Valrie Curtis was accused of gross dereliction of duty by the Speaker. However, Curtis dismissed the claim, calling for a public apology from the Speaker. To date, the Speaker has not tendered a public apology to Curtis.

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