Ministry of Finance and the Public Service
Audit Committee Performance Evaluation guideline (ACPE tool)
Kingston, Jamaica: Tuesday, September 19, 2023
Officers of the Revenue Protection Department (RPD), with assistance from the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA), last week, arrested and charged Rhemalee Wint-Lewis, Tax Auditor of the Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) for breaches of the Corruption Prevention Act.
Mrs. Wint–Lewis was arrested on Thursday September 14, following a joint operation betweenthe RPD and MOCA. She was offered bail in the sum of $400,000 and is to appear in the Manchester Parish Court on Wednesday October 4, 2023.
The allegations are that in July 2023, the accused informed a taxpayer that there was an audit being conducted on their business, which showed a preliminary assessment in the amount of $20M. It is further alleged that she asked the taxpayer for a meeting to discuss the matter in private. During this and subsequent meetings, Mrs. Wint-Lewis offered to reduce the audit significantly by various means. She reportedly demanded $3M and a Honda CRV as payment.
A September 14 date was set for a meeting with the taxpayer to ensure that the motor vehicle could be transferred without being traced and to collect a portion of the requested monies. A sting operation was set up by the RPD and MOCA, where the accused was held with the money in her possession.
In response to the action, Tax Administration Jamaica states that it strongly supports and promotes integrity and accountability in keeping with its core values.
Commissioner of the RPD, Cranston G. Morgan, while reiterating the policy of the Department not to comment on active cases, stressed the importance of partnership and collaboration as critical tools in combatting corruption especially in the revenue service. “The RPD”, he states, “is ready, willing, and able to work with its partners to minimise the occurrences of fraud and corruption and to maximise the ability of the RPD and its partners to cauterise the impact of corrupt actors on the reputation and goodwill of the revenue services”.
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Revenue Protection Department
Ministry of Finance & The Public Service
30 National Heroes Circle
Kingston 3.
rpdinfo@mof.gov.jm
RPD: Protecting the Revenue… Protecting the Future
-end-
The Hon. Nigel Clarke, D.Phil., MP
Minister of Finance and the Public Service
30 National Heroes Circle, Kingston 4
Tel: (876) 932-4656 / 4660 / 4655
Eml: opedjamaica@gmail.com
Civil servants in leadership roles across central government are being urged to effectively engage in coaching and mentoring employees within the public service so they too can be effective leaders. The call came during the Civil Service Week Public Forum held at the AC Hotel by Marriott on Tuesday, November 21, 2023.
The Government of Jamaica and the World Bank signed a loan agreement for USD 30 million to support the Jamaica Education Project (JEP) which is programmed to conclude on June 30, 2029. The Government of Jamaica and World Bank representatives participated in a visibility ceremony for the loan agreement held at the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service on Monday, November 20, 2023.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Government of Jamaica have signed a Project Preparation Facility (PPF) Technical Assistance agreement to generate a pipeline of investment projects in Jamaica. The total project is valued at US$1.25 million.
On November 3, 2023, the Government of Jamaica (GOJ) issued the first ever Jamaican Dollar (J$) linked international bond in the amount of J$46.6 billion, equivalent to USD 300 million. The issuance, which was oversubscribed 1.4 times, consists of Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030 which are registered with the Securities Exchange Commission in the United States.
Stay in the know with everything going on at the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service by subscribing the MOFPS INSIDER magazine.
Stay in the know with everything going on at the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service.
