The Integrity Commission (IC) has ruled that a National Insurance Scheme (NIS) administrator at the Westmoreland parish office of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) with more than 30 years’ experience be charged with breaches of the Corruption Prevention Act.
The administrator, Claude McIntosh, is accused of contacting the self-employed complainant, asking the individual to pay over $500,000 in outstanding NIS contributions or face consequences. The ruling from the IC’s Director of Corruption Prosecution, Keisha Prince-Kameka, forms part of a 36-page investigation report from the IC which was tabled in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. It followed an investigation by the IC’s Director of Investigations (DI), Kevon Stephenson.
In her ruling, Prince-Kameka said that after reviewing the investigation report, pursuant to the provisions of the Integrity Commission Act, “Upon careful consideration, it was determined that Mr Claude McIntosh should be charged for breach of Section 14 (1)(b) of the Corruption Prevention Act.”
According to the investigation report, Stephenson, during the course of his investigation, “uncovered an apparent act of corruption involving McIntosh in relation to the recovery of outstanding NIS contributions.
The report said the investigation commenced on March 15, 2023, based on Section 33 of the Integrity Commission Act which empowers the DI to investigate allegations involving acts of corruption or non-compliance with the provisions of the legislation.
The probe was triggered by an anonymous telephone call from the complainant on March 7, 2023, who stated that he was contacted via telephone in December 2022 by McIntosh who told him that he McIntosh was associated with the NIS and that he owed over $500,000 in NIS payments.
The complainant was told that he needed to make the payment urgently, “otherwise, there will be problems”.
McIntosh, according to the investigation report, also provided a bank account number where the payment should be made. And, he told the complainant that if he were to pay the monies to the bank account, he would give him a discount of $150,000.
When the complainant enquired about being issued a receipt for the payment, McIntosh reportedly advised him that it would take at least two weeks to obtain receipts in Jamaica.
McIntosh then reportedly contacted the complainant on numerous occasions by way of email, telephone calls and via WhatsApp. Stephenson, in his conclusion, noted that Mcintosh, up to the time of the report (December 4) was still employed as a NIS Administrator at the Westmoreland Parish Office of MLSS.
Stephenson concluded that McIntosh advised the complainant that he owed outstanding NIS contributions and proceeded to request that the payments be made to his personal bank account. The DI’s conclusion is premised on the evidence gathered during the course of the investigation, and McIntosh’s admission that he engaged the complainant by way of telephone in respect of the said outstanding contributions.
Stephenson also concluded that the complainant had outstanding NIS contributions for himself, as a self-employed individual, in the sum of $571,083.98, and for the business entity Dream Team Divers, in excess of $29,019.80, as at June 24, 2024.
The DI also found that the telephone number which was used to communicate with the complainant during the period December 13, 2022, to March 6, 2023, was confirmed as belonging to McIntosh, and was in his custody at all material times.
The DI further concluded that the telephone number utilised in this instance, is the same number associated with the WhatsApp messaging service used in the referenced interactions between McIntosh and the complainant. He also concluded that McIntosh utilised the WhatsApp messaging service to provide the complainant with his personal banking information for the payment of his outstanding NIS contributions.
The personal banking information that was provided to the complainant by McIntosh was verified to be the accurate details of an active BNS account which is held in McIntosh’s name since 2003.
It was determined that McIntosh acted in contravention of the Ministry’s National Insurance Scheme Compliance Operations Procedure Manual in respect of his efforts to collect the complainant’s outstanding NIS contributions. The DI found that he did so with the purpose of obtaining an illicit benefit.
It was also determined that McIntosh failed to adhere to the Ministry’s National Insurance Scheme Compliance Operations Procedure Manual in respect of the permissible steps to be taken when collecting outstanding contributions from non-compliant contributors/employers.
As such, the DI concluded that McIntosh’s conduct amounted to a breach(es) of Corruption Prevention Act.
Among other things, Stephenson recommended that:
- The MLSS conducts continuous islandwide training and sensitisation sessions with all employees assigned duties in respect of the National Insurance Scheme. The objective of this recommendation is to ensure that all NIS employees are au fait with the policies and procedures of the Ministry, touching and concerning the recovery of NIS contributions.
- That the MLSS sensitise its employees around the principles of ethics and integrity, in an effort to prevent corrupt and unethical conduct. The DI further recommends that awareness sessions be conducted with NIS contributors, both employers and self-employed individuals, regarding the proper method of making their NIS contribution.
The DI said the MLSS should also take steps to fraud proof NIS systems and processes, as well as, to prevent acts of corruption and other irregularities within the NIS.
And the DI has recommended that the matter be referred to the MLSS for any applicable internal disciplinary actions to be taken against Mr McIntosh.
Meanwhile, Stephenson has appealed to anyone who has paid monies to, or who has been approached by McIntosh in relation to their NIS contributions, to contact his office as soon as practicable.
