EDITORIAL - How Mr Byles should see his mandate

Richard Byles, the president of Sagicor Jamaica, has no need to convince anyone of his independence and willingness to call things as he sees them.

Yet, we are heartened that he did just that last week, in the context of the assignment he has taken on as co-chair, with Brian Wynter, the governor of the central bank, of the oversight committee for Jamaica's agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

"… I am not there to do anybody's bidding," Mr Byles said. Significantly, too, Mr Byles declared his fellow committee members to be equally "serious people".

We interpret Mr Byles' comment to this newspaper as setting the tone for how he expects the committee to operate: straight and uncompromising, willing at all times to be frank about Jamaica's performance under the IMF agreement. First, however, there has to be clarity about the terms of reference of the committee and how the group intends to execute its mandate.

Peter Phillips, the finance minister, has indicated that the group, constituting members of the public and private sectors, as well as representatives of labour, will have a monitoring role and the authority to tell the public what it finds. Presumably, therefore, its members won't be constrained by the Secrecy Act or be required to subscribe to non-disclosure agreements. That is good.

But just as, if not more, important is when they will get their data and the quality of access members, especially the non-public-sector ones, will have to the bureaucracy. These questions, on the face of it, ought not to arise, given the committee's co-chairmanship by Mr Wynter and with membership by the financial secretary, as well as the head of the finance ministry's unit charged with the programme's implementation.

While we have no doubt about the commitment to the policy objectives, this newspaper also understands the culture of the public sector. The bureaucracy's notion of urgency is not often congruent with the private sector's. When timetables are not met or things go awry, the bureaucrat's default is usually wishful pretence, if not oblivion, rather than transparent acknowledgement and immediate corrective effort.

ESTABLISH CAUCUS

Against this backdrop, we must insist on contemporaneous policy information and data and be willing to make forward projections about targets and the achievements, instead of being prescriptive after the fact. Indeed, even as they work for the common good, the private-sector members of the committee may find it useful to establish a caucus, even informally, willing to resist, and to speak out, when others may be less vocal about possible dangers.

Our suggestions for how the committee should go about its mandate will involve more than the group sitting together and reviewing already analysed and/or interpreted information. There has to be primary analysis of the information and, therefore, a broader interpretation by private-sector members of their terms of reference.

In that regard, they should engage the research arms of the Bankers' Association, the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, and whoever else they feel can help to provide assistance. And Mr Byles must talk often - and loudly - if the programme is on track, but more so if it is not.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.