JCC sounds off on Trafigura affair

THE JAMAICA Chamber of Commerce (JCC) has once again called for full disclosure on the Trafigura affair, in light of this week's revelation that a Supreme Court order has been granted for several leaders of the People's National Party (PNP) to "respond truthfully" to questions posed by Dutch authorities conducting a probe into the $31-million donation to the party in 2006.

In a release yesterday, the JCC said it holds firmly to the view that trust and transparency in governance must always apply to both of the island's major political parties

"In essence, we believe that political organisations which call for transparency from their opposite numbers must demonstrate their willingness to do likewise if and when they find themselves facing situations which bring their own transparency into question," the chamber said in its release.

Need for thorough probe

The JCC stressed that from the time the Trafigura affair first surfaced, it has been consistent in looking at the matter from all sides - inclusive of speaking to issues of bank confidentiality - while always emphasising the need for a thorough investigation of the entire issue and for clarity and truthfulness in reporting to the country on the matter.

"We have taken a similar stance on the Manatt, Phelps & Phillips matter which is facing the current government," the chamber said.

"Therefore, in the wake of reports of the granting of the Supreme Court order for PNP officials to answer questions on Trafigura, the JCC has been concerned about the manner in which questions put directly to some members of the PNP hierarchy are being treated."

The JCC pointed to a news item aired on Wednesday in which a PNP official refused to answer a journalist's question about whether funds which were returned to Trafigura had, in fact, found their way back into the PNP's coffers. The chamber said this was not the type of response "which supports the building of trust within a citizenry which has been battered for too long by the spectre of scandals such as Trafigura and the Manatt, Phelps & Phillips affair".

The release added: "The JCC wishes to state categorically that we expect elected officials on both sides of the political divide to make a demonstrable, ongoing commitment to transparency in governance and, when it becomes necessary, to cooperate fully with the judicial process if it must be engaged to deal with some issues."