A prominent private sector leader and Senator, Don Wehby, has come out in support of the decision by the Government to increase the retirement ages of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the Auditor General.

The Government senator, who is CEO of GraceKennedy, indicated his support during his contribution to the debate on the amendments to Sections 96(1) and 121(1) of the constitution which were approved in the Senate on Friday.

The lawmaker noted that the amendments affect two very important public offices within Jamaica.

“I believe the ladies who hold these offices, Ms Paula Llewellyn (DPP) and Ms Pamela Monroe Ellis have served their country well. They have stayed true to the mandate of their offices and upheld the highest standard of work expected of them”, Wehby said.

“That said Mr President, in looking at the what is being proposed in terms of these amendments our focus must remain on the office itself and not the office holder,” Wehby added.

He argued that “We have to look at what is best in terms of the office. I do not believe that this government takes matters of the constitution lightly. In my opinion the matter we are discussing here today is one that was already decided from 2017 with the passage of the Pensions (Public Service) Act. Today, we are simply taking the steps necessary to concretize within the law the policy position which we are all aware of from 2017. So, there are really no surprises here. I can’t recall if I had heard any objections in 2017. If anything, the real issue is these amendments should have been done long ago for good order”.

Wehby also reasoned that with the change in the retirement age for public sector workers, the government could not in good conscience decide not to also extend the retirement age applicable to the DPP and the Auditor General.

“It seems a very simple matter to me, fair and equitable in all the circumstances”, he stated.

The Senator told the upper house of Parliament that it would be good if a succession planning is considered for key public offices, similar to what transpires in sections of the private sector.

“Mr President, proper succession planning is extremely important to ensure the continuity of our nation’s affairs for offices such as the ones under consideration. I am proposing that at any given time there ought to be a robust succession planning programme in place to ensure that there are three candidates who are being trained and equipped to fill the role of DPP and Auditor General”, Wehby urged.