#BTColumn – Integrity is a way of life

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by this author are their own and do not represent the official position of the Barbados Today.

by Peter Webster

“Integrity is the practice of honesty and showing a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values.” – Wikipedia

“One of the truest tests of integrity is its blunt refusal to be compromised.” – Chinua Achebe

“Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody is going to know whether you did it or not.” – Oprah Winfrey

“People of integrity do what they say they are going to do – others have excuses.” –  Dr Laura Schlessinger

“Integrity is not a destination. It is a way of life. It is an internal guidance system that will never guide you astray.” – Kelley Kosow

Given the foregoing, it is obvious that integrity cannot really be legislated, an individual either practises it or not.  What we can do is create laws that require the practice of “integrity”. That we in Barbados need such legislation to promote the practice of integrity by our leaders, both public and private, speaks volumes about what some are perceived to currently practice – it is a question of transparency – and the target is the exception who spoil it for all the others.

It is little consolation for us that most other countries also have such legislation despite a range of other laws which broadly protect ordinary folk from general corruption and dishonesty. We do not have to look much further than the “Swamp” for that.

The problem is that there are so many loopholes in such other legislation (that has been the excuse anyway) that specific “integrity legislation” for public officials and others is needed to close those loopholes.

Such legislation was promised to the Barbados electorate by successive Governments in the last 25 years, but not delivered. Why? That failure has unfortunately branded our representatives in the eyes of the public as lacking in the very integrity that they promised the electorate. This “branding” is probably unjust to the majority of them who already practice integrity.

The most recent draft integrity legislation in Barbados was approved by the Lower House of Parliament but failed to be approved by the Senate, where the supposedly independent Senators teamed up to defeat it under “fishy”, if not shambolic, conditions.

Was this purely a “sober second thought” on the quality of the legislation or were there other issues, including political, which also queries the purpose of the senate and whether we really need it as it is structured?

The question of legislation quality also reflects poorly on the public servant drafters who seem to have taken 25 years to draft it and raises serious questions as to why our legislative drafters must draft a totally new law when there are so many examples already in existence and available.

In other words, they must “build the wheel all over again”.

My understanding is that exemplary legislation on “Integrity of public officials” was available and that all our drafters really needed to do was some minor adaptations to comply with
local practice, but they would appear to have started from scratch again.

It reminds me of the Ministry of Agriculture’s complaint that at one time it was awaiting the drafting of 12 different pieces of legislation, many for more than ten years, including
one for praedial larceny which had been promised all the way back in 1992.

At that time the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations had offered technical assistance in the drafting of all the needed agricultural legislation, but it was refused on the grounds that “such assistance could create more problems than we already had”. Does that make any sense to you?

In the meantime, the public is left in limbo once again awaiting the finished “integrity legislation” which is currently undergoing “minor” adjustments. It is not recommended that we “hold our breath” until then.

In any case, those few that might be most affected by the Integrity Legislation need not worry unduly because if or when such becomes law, there will be the matter of enforcement; and given our record in enforcement, what is the likelihood? Round and round we go…

Peter Webster is a retired Portfolio Manager of the Caribbean Development Bank and a former Senior Agricultural Officer in the Ministry of Agriculture.