Dear Editor,
I was disappointed to read the editorial dated Friday, January 4, 2013 titled Clean up the traffic ticket mess, in which you erroneously ascribed full responsibility to Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ). Let me therefore set the record straight on the matters you outlined.
(1) The tax authority did not offer a traffic ticket amnesty. This was offered by the Ministry of National Security (MNS) and Ministry of Justice (MOJ). However, as the main collecting agency for the Government of Jamaica, special legislation was passed to allow TAJ to collect on outstanding tickets during the six-month amnesty period. This was necessary as outside of this special legislation, TAJ is only authorised by law to collect on traffic tickets up to 21 days of them being issued. Tickets outside of this period have to be adjudicated through the Courts.
(2) The database used is that of the MNS, Police Traffic and Highway Division and not that of TAJ. In fact, as a standard operating procedure, a report of ALL payments made through the network of tax offices or online is provided to the police on a daily basis, to be used by them to update the police traffic ticketing system.
(3) Tax Administration Jamaica did NOT upload any information to the website, as incorrectly quoted in your editorial. The information was pulled from the old Police Traffic Ticketing System, which should reflect payments made through TAJ or through the Courts. It should be noted that most of the issues indicated by persons were in relation to tickets said to have been adjudicated through the Courts. Please be advised that TAJ would have no record of any payments or rulings made at any Court Office.
(4) The website for the traffic ticket amnesty is that of the Ministry of National Security and not of the TAJ. Whereas I agree that there were discrepancies on the website; motorists had six months within which to rectify these by contacting the Police Traffic Department, as indicated in a statement on the website.
(5) Please be reminded also that Tax Administration Jamaica can take no responsibility for the description of a vehicle for which a ticket has been issued as we are not responsible for issuing or writing traffic tickets.
(6) The standard practice within TAJ is for staff to be held accountable for mistakes made. However, in this matter TAJ cannot impose sanctions for something for which they are not responsible. Over the next few weeks we will be working with the MNS to again provide data on payments made through our offices, to ensure that the traffic ticket amnesty records may be updated.
(7) Please rest assured that with the new Automated Police Traffic Ticketing System, which is in place since September 21, 2010, TAJ invested in upgrading our computerised systems to integrate with that of the police. As a result, payments made through any TAJ channel, online or inline, are now automatically updated into the police traffic ticketing system database. It is this new system which allows the police to use a Blackberry phone to enter TRN or Registration Plate Number to establish the status of a motorist.
(8) The staff of TAJ should be applauded for the tremendous work done particularly on December, 31, 2012, the final day of the amnesty, to serve the over 21,600 persons who showed up to make their amnesty payments. This feat was achieved while having to attend to other customers during the usually busy end of month period. The fact that some of our team members rang in the New Year working at the tax office, shows that even under the most trying circumstances and undeserved criticisms, they are committed to their jobs.
I trust that you will afford us the opportunity to clarify the grave injustice and misconception that you have perpetrated through your editorial, using a similarly prominent feature.
Meris Haughton (Miss)
Director, Communications
Tax Administration Jamaica
communications@taj.gov.jm
Don't blame Tax Admin over traffic ticket issue
-->
I was disappointed to read the editorial dated Friday, January 4, 2013 titled Clean up the traffic ticket mess, in which you erroneously ascribed full responsibility to Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ). Let me therefore set the record straight on the matters you outlined.
(1) The tax authority did not offer a traffic ticket amnesty. This was offered by the Ministry of National Security (MNS) and Ministry of Justice (MOJ). However, as the main collecting agency for the Government of Jamaica, special legislation was passed to allow TAJ to collect on outstanding tickets during the six-month amnesty period. This was necessary as outside of this special legislation, TAJ is only authorised by law to collect on traffic tickets up to 21 days of them being issued. Tickets outside of this period have to be adjudicated through the Courts.
(2) The database used is that of the MNS, Police Traffic and Highway Division and not that of TAJ. In fact, as a standard operating procedure, a report of ALL payments made through the network of tax offices or online is provided to the police on a daily basis, to be used by them to update the police traffic ticketing system.
(3) Tax Administration Jamaica did NOT upload any information to the website, as incorrectly quoted in your editorial. The information was pulled from the old Police Traffic Ticketing System, which should reflect payments made through TAJ or through the Courts. It should be noted that most of the issues indicated by persons were in relation to tickets said to have been adjudicated through the Courts. Please be advised that TAJ would have no record of any payments or rulings made at any Court Office.
(4) The website for the traffic ticket amnesty is that of the Ministry of National Security and not of the TAJ. Whereas I agree that there were discrepancies on the website; motorists had six months within which to rectify these by contacting the Police Traffic Department, as indicated in a statement on the website.
(5) Please be reminded also that Tax Administration Jamaica can take no responsibility for the description of a vehicle for which a ticket has been issued as we are not responsible for issuing or writing traffic tickets.
(6) The standard practice within TAJ is for staff to be held accountable for mistakes made. However, in this matter TAJ cannot impose sanctions for something for which they are not responsible. Over the next few weeks we will be working with the MNS to again provide data on payments made through our offices, to ensure that the traffic ticket amnesty records may be updated.
(7) Please rest assured that with the new Automated Police Traffic Ticketing System, which is in place since September 21, 2010, TAJ invested in upgrading our computerised systems to integrate with that of the police. As a result, payments made through any TAJ channel, online or inline, are now automatically updated into the police traffic ticketing system database. It is this new system which allows the police to use a Blackberry phone to enter TRN or Registration Plate Number to establish the status of a motorist.
(8) The staff of TAJ should be applauded for the tremendous work done particularly on December, 31, 2012, the final day of the amnesty, to serve the over 21,600 persons who showed up to make their amnesty payments. This feat was achieved while having to attend to other customers during the usually busy end of month period. The fact that some of our team members rang in the New Year working at the tax office, shows that even under the most trying circumstances and undeserved criticisms, they are committed to their jobs.
I trust that you will afford us the opportunity to clarify the grave injustice and misconception that you have perpetrated through your editorial, using a similarly prominent feature.
Meris Haughton (Miss)
Director, Communications
Tax Administration Jamaica
communications@taj.gov.jm
Don't blame Tax Admin over traffic ticket issue
-->