Analysis: Should Minister Tufton Have Been Referred For Prosecution Over His Role In The Health Ministry's Award of Contracts To Market Me?
SUBSCRIBER CONTENT
Video: Dr. Christopher Tufton featured in one of the Jamaica Moves videos.
The Oct. 7 Integrity Commission (IC) report found that Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton “could reasonably be considered to have indirectly influenced” the engagement of Market Me Consulting Limited by his ministry—a company co-owned by his friend, Lyndsey McDonnough, and later awarded almost $80 million (US$563,819) in no-bid contracts from the health ministry and one of its agencies.
Despite that finding, the IC stopped short of recommending prosecution, instead referring the matter to the Speaker of the House—a move typically reserved for breaches of conduct, not procurement law.
Tufton admitted having been McDonnough’s friend since 2011-- before Market Me was incorporated in 2013 and before he became Minister of Health and Wellness in March 2016.
And yet, evidence submitted to the IC by the ministry’s then-Permanent Secretary Dr. Kevin Harvey and its then-Manager Public Relations and Communications Stephanie Shaw Smith showed it was:
Tufton who introduced Market Me to the ministry upon taking office.
Tufton who asked that Market Me be involved in all PR activities related to his role before the ministry had ever contracted with the company.
And Tufton who pushed for the company to present its proposal for its physical activity program, Jamaica Moves, though another firm, OGM Integrated Communications, already had a contract for a similar program, Make It Count.
Director of Investigation (DI) Kevon Stephenson concluded that the rules required Tufton to have formally declared a conflict of interest, but he didn’t. And still, the DI didn’t recommend a criminal sanction.
While the IC has since explained why the DI declined to do so, based on an analysis by 18º North, the reason still seems inadequate for a public wanting to know where’s the accountability in Jamaica’s governance system?