Agri ministry wants review of OCG Act

Thursday, September 30, 2010

THE Ministry of Agriculture is calling for a review of the legislation governing the operations of the Office of the Contractor General (OCG).

This followed Tuesday's dismissal by Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn of recommendations by Contractor General Greg Christie to pursue criminal charges against Agriculture Minister Christopher Tufton, and permanent secretary Donovan Stanberry.

The OCG made the recommendation earlier this month in a report to Parliament, where it contended that there had been contractual discrepancies in the sealing of a multi-million dollar consultancy deal with former banker Aubyn Hill, who was the point man in the negotiations to divest five state-owned sugar estates and their assets.

He charged that Tufton, Stanberry and Hill had been wilfully misleading as to the terms of Hill's employment and "provided the OCG with statements which were manifestly and materially false" and in contravention of Section 29 (a) of the Contractor General Act and Section 8 of the Perjury Act.

But Tuesday, expressing relief that DPP Paula Llewellyn had ruled that there were insufficient grounds on which to bring criminal charges, the ministry in a statement called for the OCG Act to be "re-examined to allow for a greater level of interaction between public servants and the contractor general before cases are referred to the DPP and disseminated to the media".

The ministry said "though relieved at their exoneration, the minister and the permanent secretary suffered untold anguish due to the assault on their reputations" and wished to highlight a number of issues which they said must be speedily addressed due to their implications for public administration in the future.

Stating that it fully endorsed and respected Christie's work, the ministry said "it must also be appreciated that because of the prevailing perception by the public that the public service is inherently corrupt, the Contractor General enjoys wide public support and may unwittingly influence public opinion and perception in relation to corruption in Government's contracts award system".

"Within this context, it is critical that the contractor general exercise the utmost care in his investigation to understand context motives and intent before recommending criminal prosecution, as once he makes these recommendations to charge public servants, the said public servants' reputations immediately come under attack in the court of public opinion," the statement said.

According to the ministry, the Office of the Auditor General --which enjoys no less independence than the contractor general, and which has a much wider mandate to ensure probity in all government transactions -- as a matter of convention affords public servants an opportunity to respond to its various reports, before they are tabled in Parliament.

It said while this practice is not grounded in law, the OCG could do well to follow suit "as it can clear up a number of issues and prevent anguish to public servants who might make genuine mistakes in their work".

Do you feel buying into Facebook now is a good investment for the long-run?
	Yes
	No

View Results
Results published weekly in Sunday Finance

Username:
Password:

Teen killed for laughing at man who fell from bicycle

Agri ministry wants review of OCG Act