Barnett acknowledges BCW connection

The Editor, Sir:

Please allow me space in your publication to clarify certain points which were made in an article published on the front page of the Business section of The Gleaner, dated March 7, 2012, under the heading 'Rohan Barnett denies BCW connection ... Departs FSC March 30'.

In November 2011, I indicated to the former minister of finance, my intention to resign from the Financial Services Commission (FSC) immediately following the general election in December 2011, in order to pursue other professional and personal endeavours.

It was at the time of giving that notice of my resignation that I received and accepted an offer to serve as a director of BCW Holdings Limited, effective December 2011.

However, with the change in government resulting from the general election, I discussed the matter of the need for a smooth transition in the administration of FSC with the current minister of finance and we both agreed that, in the national interest, I would postpone my resignation.

Following that agreement, I advised the BCW executives that I would not have been in a position to take up the offer.

As has been announced in the media, on March 1, 2012, I formally tendered my resignation as executive director of FSC, effective March 30, 2012.

Therefore, I am currently weighing several options available to me locally and internationally, including a senior role at BCW, about which I am yet to make a decision.

It has been an honour for me to serve my country over the past three years as executive director of the FSC and to have been a part of the extraordinary events which have taken place over that period in Jamaica's history.

Rohan Barnett

Financial Services Commission