KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) says it expects a speedy review by the parliamentary oversight committees of the “long anticipated” reports on the PETROJAM investigations.

In a press release today, the PSOJ said it notes with concern that the Integrity Commission has also indicated that matters be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Financial Investigations Division and the Commissioner of Police for further investigations.

The organisation said these latest reports appear to justify the perception of most Jamaicans, that “for far too long corruption still looms large within our country”. It noted that many Jamaicans have lost and continue to lose faith in our systems of governance, accountability and justice.

“The overhang of real and/or perceived corrupt practices since independence has left many Jamaicans sceptical with a high level of mistrust in our leaders across the political, private, public sectors and civil society,” PSOJ President Keith Duncan said.

“Corruption has also stunted the potential growth of our country with the misuse of scarce resources that could have been invested in the building out of education, health, national security, water and other poverty alleviation measures. These measures could have materially bettered the living conditions of our people and created a more investor friendly environment which would have seen greater domestic and foreign investments in Jamaica,” Duncan continued.

The PSOJ said it is now time for leaders and citizens to raise the bar of accountability for ourselves and our leaders to create a prosperous, fair and equitable Jamaica. 

“We look forward to the swift review of the reports, conclusion of the investigations and for the appropriate justice to be administered,” the organisation said.