No commission of enquiry - Golding

OCG concludes special investigation into oil-lifting contracts between PCJ and Trafigura Beheer

The Gleaner presents excerpts from a release issued yesterday by the Office of the Contractor General.

Kingston; August 23, 2010:

The decision to commence the investigation was taken by Contractor General Greg Christie on October 9, 2006, after an announcement was made on October 3, 2006, by the then leader of the opposition and current prime minister of Jamaica Bruce Golding, in which he reportedly accused the then ruling People's National Party (PNP) of financing its annual conference with a J$31 million largesse which was provided by the Dutch oil-trader, Trafigura Beheer.

A media report, which was published in The Gleaner on October 4, 2006, and which was entitled 'Partying on state funds', provides further details of Mr Golding's allegations as follows:

'The Opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), yesterday accused the governing People's National Party (PNP), of using state funds of up to $31 million from the Nigerian oil deal, to finance the party's annual conference last month.

But in a quick response last night, the Government denied the claims.

The allegations were made shortly after the opposition members walked out of the House of Representatives during a censure motion debate brought against Karl Samuda, the JLP member of parliament for St Andrew North Central.

In a hastily called press conference inside the Opposition's quarters at Gordon House, Mr Golding released findings of transactions, which he said were made to an account in Jamaica known as CCOC Association, with Minister of Information Colin Campbell as one of the signatories on the account.

Mr Golding said that two cheques totalling $30 million were issued, payable to SW Services, with both having the signatures of Mr Campbell, in addition to the signatures of Phillip Paulwell, the minister of industry, commerce and technology, Prakash Vaswani and Delano Barnett.

A third cheque for $465,000 drawn on the account of CCOC Association, was, according to Mr Golding, made payable to Mr Campbell.

Mr Golding claimed that the cheques were deposited by Trafigura Beheer, an international company based in the Netherlands which was engaged to carry out the lifting and trading of oil from Nigeria, on the country's behalf.

The oil deal with Nigeria was reportedly negotiated in the 1970s by the Michael Manley administration. The country is supposed to benefit from the proceeds of the sale of oil on the international market.

But Government member and PNP chairman, Robert Pickersgill, has denied the allegations.

"That is a mouthful of allegations and at the appropriate time the party will respond," he said.

Dr Raymond Wright, formerly group managing director of the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, and now consultant, said he did not know of the allegations.

"I know nothing about these specific allegations. I have no information on it whatsoever. It seems to me very unusual," he said last night.

Meanwhile, Mr Golding has called for the resignation of the entire government.

"This government has acquired immunity to scandals, but there comes a time when enough is enough. That time has come! It is time for this wretched government to go. This one needs no commission of enquiry," he stated.'

Given the grave implications of the allegations which had been made by Mr Golding, his call for the "resignation of the entire government" and his public assertion that the matter, in his view, was one which needed no independent investigation or "commission of inquiry", the OCG deemed the allegations to be sufficiently pressing to warrant the immediate initiation of a special investigation.

Consequently, and in the interest of public transparency, an OCG media release was issued on October 10, 2006, to advise the public of the OCG's decision and to publish the full text of the letter which had been despatched the previous day, by the contractor general, to the then minister of industry, technology, energy and commerce, Phillip Paulwell, in which the minister was required to respond to the OCG, providing specified particulars of the circumstances which surrounded the Government's commercial arrangements with Trafigura Beheer.

The terms of reference of the OCG's investigation were structured to elucidate three particular elements of the allegations which had been made by Mr Golding, namely (a) the propriety of the procurement process, (b) the link, if any, between the money which was allegedly paid by Trafigura Beheer to the CCOC Association, and the award and/or prospective award of any government contract to Trafigura and, (c) whether, in consequence, there was any evidence of any form of corruption.

In keeping with the requirements of the Contractor General Act, copies of the OCG's Special Report of Investigation into the matter were today sent by the contractor general to seven state authorities.

Special considerations

Pursuant to Section 20 (1) of the act, copies of the report were conveyed to James Robertson, minister of energy and mining, Nigel Logan, acting group managing director of the PCJ, and Hillary Alexander, permanent secretary in the ministry of energy and mining.

Consequently, and having particular regard to the nature of one of the primary recommendations which is embodied in the report, a copy of the referenced report has also been formally conveyed by the contractor general to the learned director of public prosecutions.

It should be noted that there are certain special considerations which occasioned a deliberate suspension by the OCG of its completion of its report. These considerations are outlined in the report itself.