Don’t set out to please anyone, departing Christie urges IC staff

With just over a month remaining before his contract expires, Greg Christie, the executive director of the Integrity Commission (IC), has urged his colleagues to remain steadfast and impartial in their ongoing fight against corruption in Jamaica.

In an April 9 letter to employees and commissioners at the IC, the long-time anti-corruption tzar had sobering words for his colleagues.

“To our officers, I urge you to continue to protect and uphold the principles upon which our great organisation was built. They are integrity, service in the public interest, impartiality, independence, accountability, confidentiality, and the rule of law,” Christie said.

The letter, a copy of which The Gleaner saw, encouraged the staff at the institution to remember their “compass and ... oath of office” and to always “do what is right”.

“Do not set out to be popular, or to do that which is expedient, or to please, or to appease anyone. These are all brightly lit signposts on the road to failure,” he said.

NOT IN IT FOR FRIENDSHIP

Known for his outspoken approach to anti-corruption advocacy, Christie reminded his colleagues that their mission was to combat corruption, not to win friends.

“Be fair and be fearless, and always lead with integrity. Eschew mediocrity in the discharge of your daily job functions, and make the search for excellence your abiding companion,” he continued.

As the end of his tenure draws near on May 17, 2025, Christie assured his colleagues that he would remain committed to the cause of integrity in public life in Jamaica.

“We need all hands on deck, for it is self-evident that Jamaica and Jamaicans will never realise their full socio-economic potential if we allow corruption to roam unimpeded amongst us,” he said.

In a letter to then-chairman Justice (Ret’d) Seymour Panton dated November 11, 2024, Christie had already expressed his decision not to seek reappointment for a further term. Despite invitations from both Panton and the newly appointed chairman, Justice (Ret’d) Carol Beswick-Lawrence, for him to stay on, Christie respectfully declined, stating that although he was humbled by their confidence in him, it was time for him to move on.

Christie said it was an honour to have participated in the leadership of such a pivotal institution in its early years and to have helped to lay the foundation for what it is today – a modern, independent, national anti-corruption body that right-thinking Jamaicans can trust and be proud of.

“Like many other new and impactful anti-corruption institutions, our journey has not been without its challenges, but together, we have built something strong, credible, and enduring,” he added.

Noting that the IC will have its “imperfections and deficits”, the experienced anti-corruption campaigner said once these are identified, it is the responsibility of the commission and its leadership to conduct a root-cause analysis and bring to bear the required corrective action.

edmond.campbell@gleanerjm.com