KINGSTON, Jamaica  — The church has come out strongly against moves by the Government to remove the Auditor General (AG) from among the five commissioners of the Integrity Commission (IC).

“The work of the Integrity Commission is of paramount importance to our nation’s development, its international reputation, and its emergence from the dark past as a nation that embraces righteousness and eschews the reproaches of sinfulness,” said the Jamaica Council of Churches (JCC) in a statement.

It added that, “Its composition has given credence to the principle of accountability, particularly with the long-standing inclusion of the auditor general”.

According to the JCC, “There is an important moral argument to be made for the contribution of the auditor general in the work of the Integrity Commission.

“This office turns the keys of financial probity in the work of the Integrity Commission and provides the required and particular capacities for the examination of the serious issues that our nation’s anti-corruption agenda demands,” it said.

On Wednesday, Government members of the joint select committee of Parliament reviewing the Integrity Commission Act 2017 used their majority to push through a recommendation by St Catherine South Western Member of Parliament Everald Warmington for a change in the rules that make the AG a commissioner of the IC.

They argued that with the IC receiving nearly $2 billion annually from the State, it should be subjected to the type of rigorous audit that only the AG’s Department can conduct.

At present the IC is audited by an independent accounting firm, but for Warmington and other Government members that audit is not comprehensive enough for the level of resources that pass through the commission each year.

But the two Opposition members present at Wednesday’s committee meeting — Dr Morais Guy and Julian Robinson — objected.

The JCC is insisting that there should be “non-interference in the composition of the IC”.

The umbrella church group reminded that it has consistently held the view that the Integrity Commission Act is a critical part of the anti-corruption legal architecture that the nation has.

“In its vision and wisdom, the Parliament of Jamaica passed into law this significant piece of legislation that is working in the fight against corruption. We have admonished our leaders in the past to resist the temptation to molest the stipulations of this act. Indeed, we saw a grave danger in its diminution and recommended instead that it be strengthened where possible and necessary,” it said.

The JCC pointed to the longstanding role played by auditors general over more than five decades in providing oversight to both the former and current iterations of the IC.

“In this context, the absence of any actual instances of conflict-of-interest, calls into question the legitimacy of the present concern of the government. As such, the removal of the auditor general from the commission risks being a net loss to the integrity and strength of the oversight framework. We await as well, more substantial reasoning from the Opposition for their support of the inclusion,” the JCC said.

Continuing, the umbrella church group said, “Any principle, policy, or practice that counteracts or appears to detract from the earnest desire to be a righteous nation must be rebuffed and repented of. We admonish the government, therefore, to recant from the reported course of removing the auditor general from the Integrity Commission. This proposal does not appear to us to comport with good governance or good reason, especially in the midst of incomplete and unresolved inquiries”.

The JCC argued that “to change the composition of the Integrity Commission in midstream appears to be disingenuous and may call into question the integrity and motivation of this intention”.