PSOJ Security Committee Welcomes Anti-Corruption Line

Chairman of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica’s (PSOJ) National Security Committee, Peter John Thwaites, has welcomed the implementation of the 1800-CORRUPT toll free line.
“The private sector’s view on the anti-corruption toll free line is that anything that can stamp out, reduce and get rid of it (corruption) completely is a wonderful thing,” he said in a recent interview with JIS News.
“I would say to people out there that you should use it to tell what you know so that we will be able to put an end to the corruption as much as we can”, he added, noting that while “we will never eliminate it, we need to stop as much of it as is necessary”.
He further called for continuous training and improved facilities for the police force, while agreeing that corrupt personnel should be held accountable.
“I think that fighting corruption is two-fold. If someone is corrupt and they do a corrupt deed, they need to be caught, but you need to also provide the police force with the facilities to do their job properly in circumstances that are conducive to effective policing and there is also the need for continuous training to ensure that people understand what corruption is,” he pointed out.
This is necessary, Mr. Thwaites said, because “a young constable may be tricked into doing something stupid and I think the intention should be to continue to train them in the things that are necessary but you also need to stamp out corruption”.
Mr. Thwaites, who is also the Chairman for Crime Stop Jamaica, said that like Crime Stop, the 1800-CORRUPT line will not be compromised.
“Crime Stop has never been compromised and we have a local line. You don’t give your name, you are allocated an identification..there is no call back and there is nothing to identify you. and it’s part of Crime Stoppers International, so it will not be compromised, and I am satisfied,” he stated.
The toll free line is a partnership involving the JCF, Crime Stoppers International, and LIME (formerly Cable and Wireless Limited).