Integrity Commission proposes electronic submission of statutory declarations

 

The Integrity Commission is seeking to have statutory declarations of public servants submitted electronically. 

 

At present, the declarations are submitted in hard copy.

 

The Commission wrote to the Joint Select Committee of Parliament reviewing the Integrity Commission Act, proposing an amendment that would allow for an electronic mechanism to receive the declarations. 

 

"The incorporation of an electronic process would reduce the receipt and filing processes. Further, resources used to manage these processes may be redirected to the examination process. The foregoing inter alia will also significantly contribute to the reduction of the backlog of statutory declarations to be examined. 

 

Given the foregoing, it was deemed prudent to consider and seek approval for the implementation of a mechanism for the electronic submission of statutory declarations, namely the electronic declaration system, that is EDS," said the letter that was read out by Chairman of the Committee, Edmund Bartlett. 

 

The Integrity Commission said compliance with relevant laws, including the Justice of the Peace Act, requiring JPs to affix their seal to any attestation, has stalled the implementation of the EDS.

 

"It was recommended that there are two steps which could be taken to permit its implementation in a way that would be consistent with applicable laws. The Commission kindly requests that the Committee, in its review of the Integrity Commission Act, consider the inclusion of an amendment to deem the submission of declaration by the EDS to comply with the relevant requirements under the Justice of the Peace Act," the letter continued.

 

In response to the requested amendment, Committee Member Government Senator Sherene Golding Campbell proposed that the requirement for a Justice of the Peace to attest to the statutory declaration be removed.

 

"Why does the Integrity Commission need a Justice of the Peace to witness my signature? This is not to say that the question of potentially fraud can't arise, but really and truly, Mr. Chairman, who is running and scrambling to sign my statutory declaration? Nobody. Statutory declarations are signed by the declarant and the declarant submits their own statutory declaration. So I don't think the requirement that a JP witness a statutory declaration is even necessary in the first place, whether on the paper copy or on the electronic submission. The amendment ought to be that the requirement of a Justice of the Peace to witness my signature is removed."

 

She was supported by Opposition Senator Donna Scott Mottley, who said she did not see the necessity for a JP to witness a signature on a statutory declaration.

 

"It would be highly unlikely that anybody would want to falsely file a statutory declaration on my behalf. And certainly, it's the Integrity Commission who examines my declaration to determine whether or not I have filed an accurate declaration. Justice of the Peace plays no rule in that. There are oftentimes when we are on the cusp of being on time because we have to actually, although we have completed our declaration, find a JP to witness it. So I think that it is time that we look at matters such as this. And I believe that we do not need to have a JP sign," Senator Scott Mottley concurred.

 

The removal of the requirement for a JP to witness the document was also supported by the Solicitor General.