Opposition Leader Mark Golding says he agrees with the position of Integrity Commission chairman, retired Justice Seymour Panton, that the auditor general’s position as one of five commissioners of the commission poses no threat of a conflict of interest.

“The objectives and interests of the Integrity Commission and the auditor general are substantially aligned around pursuing integrity in public affairs and more transparent and accountable governance,” Golding told the Jamaica Observer yesterday.

On Wednesday, Justice Panton strongly defended the presence of Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis on the commission, questioning what development had brought her membership in the commission under scrutiny.

“The auditor general has been a very valuable member of the commission, contributing the expertise of the office as well as of the individual. The commission is the better for the presence of such an informed individual who is committed, as the rest of the commissioners are, to the full execution of the mandate set out in the legislation,” Panton said.

He also rejected a demand by Cabinet Minister Everald Warmington that Monroe Ellis recuse herself from the commission as her position there was a breach of the constitution.

Golding said the auditor general’s presence on the commission enhances the effectiveness of both agencies. “Indeed, these benefits far outweigh any theoretical downside. In the rare and unlikely event of a conflict of interest, the auditor general would be expected, and indeed required, to recuse herself from the deliberations of the Integrity Commission,” he said.

Warmington has, over the years, challenged the veracity of some reports from the Auditor General’s Department (AuGD), and has called for an audit of the department. He eventually succeeded in his efforts as a report on the AuGD was tabled in April.

He had raised the issue of the auditor general’s membership after executive director of the commission Gregg Christie explained that Monroe Ellis could not audit certain aspects of its accounts due to her membership on the commission.

“Jamaica has had excellent legal drafters over the years; they comb the constitution before settling on the draft of a law. Those of us who are trained in the drafting of laws know that that is standard procedure. Jamaica’s Constitution has been in existence for nearly 60 years; and for nearly 50 of those years the auditor general has been a part of the Integrity Commission, without any of our distinguished legal scholars detecting any constitutional problem,” Panton said in response to the question of the constitutionality of the auditor general’s dual role.