Dear Editor,
One of the most impactful programmes I've ever watched was a CBS 60 Minutes episode that profiled the US FBI Director James Comey, his professed belief in the rule of law, and his resistance to his then boss, President Bush, who wanted to temporarily free himself from US law regarding searches.
We are nothing without the rule of law and order, and when governments, boards or management break their own rules, in furtherance of their own agendas, we embark on that precarious and slippery slope to chaos and hell.
"The lesson is the importance of never becoming untethered to oversight and accountability. I want all of my new special agents and intelligence analysts to understand... the dangers of falling in love with our own rectitude," Comey said.
"The lesson is the importance of never becoming untethered to oversight and accountability. I want all of my new special agents and intelligence analysts to understand... the dangers of falling in love with our own rectitude," Comey said.
In Jamaica, the reported incidence of untethering ourselves from our very own oversight and accountability has skyrocketed. The auditor general's reports continue to show disregard for proper procedure. Audits reveal instances of departure from established rules, guidelines and practices which betray good governance.
The Office of the Contractor General (OCG) is challenged to ensure that the public sector procurement process delivers value to the taxpayer; is merit-based; and free from corruption, impropriety and irregularity. Its primary functions are the monitoring and investigation of the award of Government contracts, licences and permits. Reports of at least two multimillion-dollar retaining walls (one in St Thomas) collapsing after a few weeks reveal that something must have gone wrong with due diligence. I note the OCG's Special Report of investigations conducted concerning the award of certain contracts by the St Thomas Parish Council, which shows clearly the OCG is not happy. But I want to know more. When somebody got paid to build a wall and that wall collapses while it's still new, why is there another wall of silence regarding the recouping of public funds? Shouldn't the public purse be made whole or should we just forget about it?
I would encourage more Jamaicans to make full use of the Post-Contract Works Quality Complaint Form on the OCG's website. The expensive incidence of re-work in Jamaica is scandalous; check the pothole near the intersection of Liguanea Avenue and Barbican Road, which is caught up in a vulgar loop of repair and re-work. I know it will be repaired several more times during the year. We have become a country of excessive waste and shameless do-overs at taxpayers' expense.
The recent report on big waivers for some prominent Jamaicans made me very uncomfortable too. I have no issue with waivers in furtherance of productivity, but to see lawyers, athletes and politicians being given waivers to purchase cars makes me wonder about our infatuation with our own brand of integrity. The dangers of falling in love with Jamaica's own special idea of rectitude will only accelerate our slide into decay and push us further down the global integrity scale. Since Transparency International has been ranking Jamaica, the country has averaged a Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) of only 35/100; where zero means highly corrupt, and 100 means very clean. We have never scored higher than 40/100. Is this the best we can do?
Sandra M Taylor Wiggan
Kingston 6
We're a country of excessive waste and shameless do-overs
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One of the most impactful programmes I've ever watched was a CBS 60 Minutes episode that profiled the US FBI Director James Comey, his professed belief in the rule of law, and his resistance to his then boss, President Bush, who wanted to temporarily free himself from US law regarding searches.
We are nothing without the rule of law and order, and when governments, boards or management break their own rules, in furtherance of their own agendas, we embark on that precarious and slippery slope to chaos and hell.
"The lesson is the importance of never becoming untethered to oversight and accountability. I want all of my new special agents and intelligence analysts to understand... the dangers of falling in love with our own rectitude," Comey said.
"The lesson is the importance of never becoming untethered to oversight and accountability. I want all of my new special agents and intelligence analysts to understand... the dangers of falling in love with our own rectitude," Comey said.
In Jamaica, the reported incidence of untethering ourselves from our very own oversight and accountability has skyrocketed. The auditor general's reports continue to show disregard for proper procedure. Audits reveal instances of departure from established rules, guidelines and practices which betray good governance.
The Office of the Contractor General (OCG) is challenged to ensure that the public sector procurement process delivers value to the taxpayer; is merit-based; and free from corruption, impropriety and irregularity. Its primary functions are the monitoring and investigation of the award of Government contracts, licences and permits. Reports of at least two multimillion-dollar retaining walls (one in St Thomas) collapsing after a few weeks reveal that something must have gone wrong with due diligence. I note the OCG's Special Report of investigations conducted concerning the award of certain contracts by the St Thomas Parish Council, which shows clearly the OCG is not happy. But I want to know more. When somebody got paid to build a wall and that wall collapses while it's still new, why is there another wall of silence regarding the recouping of public funds? Shouldn't the public purse be made whole or should we just forget about it?
I would encourage more Jamaicans to make full use of the Post-Contract Works Quality Complaint Form on the OCG's website. The expensive incidence of re-work in Jamaica is scandalous; check the pothole near the intersection of Liguanea Avenue and Barbican Road, which is caught up in a vulgar loop of repair and re-work. I know it will be repaired several more times during the year. We have become a country of excessive waste and shameless do-overs at taxpayers' expense.
The recent report on big waivers for some prominent Jamaicans made me very uncomfortable too. I have no issue with waivers in furtherance of productivity, but to see lawyers, athletes and politicians being given waivers to purchase cars makes me wonder about our infatuation with our own brand of integrity. The dangers of falling in love with Jamaica's own special idea of rectitude will only accelerate our slide into decay and push us further down the global integrity scale. Since Transparency International has been ranking Jamaica, the country has averaged a Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) of only 35/100; where zero means highly corrupt, and 100 means very clean. We have never scored higher than 40/100. Is this the best we can do?
Sandra M Taylor Wiggan
Kingston 6
We're a country of excessive waste and shameless do-overs
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