Integrity Commission struggling to fill vacancies, says chairman

 

Chairman of the Integrity Commission Retired Justice Seymour Panton has revealed that attacks by some Parliamentarians against the commission have made it difficult to fill available posts.

 

Justice Panton says the Commission has been short-staffed in several areas, particularly in the investigations department.

 

He says, while the commission is trying to fill those posts, potential experienced employees are turning away due to low remuneration.

 

"Every now and then somebody in Parliament or on the outside says there's a lot of money being spent on the Commission. Now, when we advertise certain positions and persons apply and the selection process is taking place, and there's a salary scale and they ought to be placed at a certain point in the scale, the Ministry of Finance says no; although the sum is voted for, the Ministry of Finance says no, you must start everybody at the bottom. So there are experienced persons who we would like to employ and they would like to be employed, but when they realise that they are starting at the bottom of the scale, they...go elsewhere," he outlined. 

 

Justice Panton, who was speaking Tuesday on Radio Jamaica's Balancing Justice, also expressed disappointment that Speaker of the House of Representatives, Juliet Holness, has failed to acknowledge receipt of a letter from the anti-corruption body raising concern about the conduct of a parliamentarian.

 

Justice Panton said he wrote to the Speaker earlier this year regarding "an ethical matter in respect of the behaviour" of the parliamentarian.  

 

"We made a certain suggestion. Well, to date, the Speaker has not, to my knowledge, acknowledged receipt of the letter, although I'm sure it was delivered. That has been a big disappointment to us. There is no breach of law as such for prosecution or anything of that nature. I mentioned it in Parliament the other day but the Parliament hasn't done anything about that. They haven't said anything. Instead some elements in the Parliament picked on some other years of my presentation. No attention has been given to that," he complained.