Churches oppose Auditor General removal from Integrity Commission

JAMAICA

The Jamaica Council of Churches (JCC)—of which the Catholic Church is a member—has opposed the proposal by the government to remove the auditor general from the anti-corruption body, the Integrity Commission.

The JCC, in a statement on Friday, June 13, said the composition of the Integrity Commission has given credence to the principle of accountability, particularly with the long-standing inclusion of the auditor general. “There is an important moral argument to be made for the contribution of the auditor general in the work of the Integrity Commission,” the JCC said, according to a Jamaica Observer report.

It said that that 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.”

The JCC said that they are mindful of the long-standing role that the auditor general has played spanning more than five decades in providing oversight to both the former and current iterations of the Integrity Commission.

It noted that the removal of the auditor general from the Integrity Commission risks being a net loss to the integrity and strength of the oversight framework.

“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 group said.

They asserted 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.

“The church will conscientiously continue to prayerfully reflect on these matters in its effort to promote ethical probity in national life,” the JCC added.

It noted that the Integrity Commission Act and the Integrity Commission must be left to function as it has in the nation’s interest.