The other side of Terrence Williams
THE story about the other side of commissioner of the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) has hardly ever been told.
The Sunday Observer caught up with the man in charge of the often- controversial organisation, at his quiet, modestly furnished office in the middle of New Kingston, where he gave our pages and lenses a peek into the life of a man with one of the toughest jobs in the island.
Q: Did you see yourself here at this point contributing to national life?
A: Actually, no. Having done 10 years in the British Virgin Islands, my intention was to come back to Jamaica and teach at the law school, and to have a fairly quiet life.
Indeed, at the time I was at the law school I was also engaged by the BVI to go back and do some prosecutions. That’s what I was doing and I was pretty happy with that, and then this came up. So this was unexpected.
Q: What was the experience like for you as Director of Public Prosecutions in the British Virgin Islands?
A: I served 10 years in the BVI. It was a pretty good experience for me, certainly at the time. The quality of the bar there was very high. A lot of persons think when you go to a smaller Caribbean island all you do is sit under a coconut tree, but I would say the court system there is better resourced than in Jamaica and the quality of the bar is equal. I was able to do really challenging cases. Because the volume is less, you are able to spend more time on each particular case. We had a lot of important successes, a lot of landmark cases. It was a very good experience.
Q: Tell us a little bit about your personal background.
A: I was born right here in Kingston, in 1966, and grew up in Spanish Town. I went to St Richard’s Primary and St George’s College, then on to the University of the West Indies. I was called to the bar in 1990.
Q: What can you tell us about your professional life?
A: I did five years prosecuting in Jamaica … I was Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions. Then I left and was in chambers at 20 1/2 Duke Street for five years. I left Jamaica having served 10 years at the bar.
Q: What do you miss most, now that you’re leading the charge at INDECOM?
A: I miss not going to court. Since I have been called to the bar, it’s the longest time I have gone without appearing in court — except for the Digicel appeal case last year, and I’m involved in the commission of inquiry. Typically, my life was every single day in court. To now not be going to court as often as I did is unusual.
Q: What doesn’t the public know about Terrence Williams?
A: I’m a very good player of billiards. When I first went to the BVI I found this spot where I used to go every Saturday and play, until a policeman said ‘no this spot here is a place where people gamble, you can’t be seen here’.
I’m also a very big fan of football. My wife will tell you I’m vexed if St George’s or Liverpool lose. I will grumble for the entire weekend. It used to be the same for the West Indies cricket team, but West Indies loses so often that I can’t vex over that anymore.
Q: What’s next?
A: Something different. I’m always trying to do things differently and better. My staff know I’m always coming with something new.
