FALMOUTH, Trelawny — There were glowing tributes, Thursday, for chief executive officer (CEO) of Trelawny Municipal Corporation (TMC) Winston Palmer during what may have been his final appearance at a monthly meeting before heading off into early retirement.

“My family lives in the United States of America and I will be joining them by the start of the new year,” Palmer told the Jamaica Observer.

Palmer was described as a mentor and leader; knowledgeable and impactful in the area of revenue generation; respectful and revered, during accolades from the TMC’s nine councillors, administrative staff, and heads of agencies.

Among those who lauded Palmer was mayor of Falmouth Councillor C Junior Gager.

“Mr Palmer has given a sterling contribution to the Trelawny Municipal Corporation where he has served two stints. The municipal corporation is better as a result of the yeoman services he has provided over the years,” Gager told the Observer.

“I have had the privilege to work with him during both occasions that he has served here. He has set the standards high for all the workers and [is] a hard act to follow for his successor,” added Gager.

After working in the private sector for 12 and a half years, Palmer started working at Manchester Municipal Corporation (MMC) as chief financial officer on January 4, 1999. A year and a half later, he assumed the CEO post at the corporation.

He was later transferred to St James Municipal Corporation before heading to TMC.

However, he would return to serve at MMC before being asked to return to TMC in January 2023.

“I have enjoyed my work with the municipal corporations over the years. I have had a wonderful relationship with my councillors, my MPs [Members of Parliament], the agencies — I think maybe because I love people and I mean people well. In general, my staff, including councillors… I regard them as my family,” Palmer told reporters.

He said throughout his 25 years’ service in local government he has been loyal to his employer.

“I basically am a man of conscience. I work in local government, I am loyal to local government, I am loyal to my employers. I don’t waste Government’s time. I don’t waste Government’s monies. I don’t steal time to use it for personal purposes. So, if I have a meeting in Kingston and it’s over, whether early or late, I return to my office and get my desk work done before I go home. I think it is a matter of principle, and we have to set examples as workers — or even as managers. Also, [we have] to go out in the field — it’s not [about] sitting around a desk and saying, ‘I am CEO and I am manager.’

“You must be out there at the various facilities; you must be on the road seeing what is happening as well; and you have to find creative ways of approaching problems and obtaining solutions. And at the same time now, you must care about your staff and you must allow for an atmosphere where your staff is happy to come to work and the productivity is good,” added Palmer.

He attributed his passion for revenue collection to his early years in the public sector, working as finance and administration manager at Jamaica Manufacturers Association before going on to a British company called Commonwealth Development Corporation as a finance executive.

“Since coming back to Trelawny we have basically grown the revenue significantly. And that is good in the sense that, as a corporation here in Trelawny, we have been able to absorb a lot of the increases in expenditure — whether it is a salary increase or otherwise. As a team we have been able to drive the revenue and, trust me, I am passionate about that — maybe because of the private sector background. I will go after my receivables, and I have a no-nonsense approach when it comes to that,” said Palmer.

His alma mater include Manchester High School; The University of West Indies where he received a Bachelor of Science in Management Studies, with a major in Accounting; and Nova South Eastern University, where he read for his MBA.