The Integrity Commission has cleared Minister of Culture Olivia “Babsy” Grange of any wrongdoing in the awarding of a multimillion-dollar contract to the business partner of one her special advisors for Jamaica’s 55th birthday Independence Grand Gala.

Grange had been put under the microscope following an audit on the operations of the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) in which it was found that Trevor Nairne — a partner in a company with her then senior advisor Lenford Salmon — was approved for a contract valued at $15 million after he had submitted an unsolicited proposal to be the artistic director of the 2016 Grand Gala.

More heat was put on Grange when the then Opposition spokeswoman on culture Lisa Hanna accused her of presiding over nepotism and corruption.

Hanna had charged that the contract was awarded “lock, stock and barrel,” with no negotiation on the amount proposed by Nairne to design costumes, choreograph performances and pay assistants which, she said, could have been done by the JCDC.

Hanna had also questioned the basis on which 50 per cent of the contract was paid to Nairne on the same day he submitted his invoice.

In her response, Grange had declared that she was not aware of the details of the contract and was not involved, “In any way in the engagement or contracting of Nairne. This was handled by the JCDC management team, whose prerogative it is to enter into contracts on behalf of the commission.”

In a report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, director of investigation (DI) at the Integrity Commission Kevon Stephenson vindicated Grange.

The DI said he had seen no evidence to indicate that Grange “was directly involved in the procurement, award and/or execution of the referenced contract”.

Stephenson also cleared Salmon, one of Nairne’s partners in Jambiz International.

According to Stephenson, the probe found that there was no indication that Salmon was directly and/or indirectly involved or influenced the award of contract by the JCDC to Nairne.

The investigation also found that no public official, or employee of the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, or the JCDC, influenced the submission of the unsolicited proposal presented by Nairne.

“The DI has found no evidence upon which to conclude that the JCDC’s engagement of Mr Trevor Nairne for artistic direction of the 2016 Independence Grand Gala Celebration gave rise to a conflict of interest, notwithstanding Mr Nairne’s long-standing friendship and professional relationship with Mr Lenford Salmon, senior advisor to the minister,

“The DI concludes that $7,500,000.00, representing 50 per cent of the contract value, was paid to Mr Trevor Nairne on July 15, 2016, the same day on which he submitted an invoice to the JCDC for the full contract value. However, the DI also concludes that the aforementioned payment was in keeping with the terms of the duly executed contract, which required the payment of 50 per cent of the total value upon execution of the contract,” said Stephenson.

But Stephenson concluded that the accounting officer at the JCDC failed to report the contract which was awarded to Nairne in breach of the then Contractor General Act which established the procurement rules for State agencies.

Against that background, Stephenson has recommended that the executive director of the JCDC develops and implements guidelines for the acceptance and evaluation of unsolicited proposals.

“This should contain clear submission and assessment procedures, in accordance with industry best practices and international standards, to ensure that the objectives of fairness, transparency and value for money are achieved in the award of contracts for artistic services.”

He has also recommended that the Grange-led Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport issues a policy directive to the entities which fall under its control to develop and implement specific procurement guidelines, in accordance with industry standards and best practices, in relation to the procurement of artistic and cultural performance services as well as products and services associated with cultural productions.

“The DI’s recommendation is premised on the absence of a definitive procurement procedure governing the procurement of cultural products and services by the JCDC. The DI highlights that the exclusion of the subject products and services from the public sector procurement guidelines does not absolve the JCDC of its responsibility to ensure that the objectives of accountability, transparency and value for money are demonstrably achieved in the procurement of the referenced products and services,” the report noted.

Stephenson has also recommended that the ministry provides a policy directive to entities under its control, regarding the acceptance of unsolicited proposals and the nature of the evaluation and/or assessment to be conducted, in determining how the procuring entities may treat with these proposals.