The Office of the Integrity Commission, on Monday facilitated a one-day workshop on Ethics and Integrity with members of the Council and Faculty of the T. A. Marryshow Community College (TAMCC).
The activity which was held in the Hospitality Arts Building of the College was attended by twenty-seven participants, including Chairperson of the Council Dr. Wendy Grenade, and Principal of the College Dr. Ronald Brunton.
In her remarks Dr. Grenade thanked the Commission for accepting the Council’s invitation to share knowledge and incite on the topics and to provide guidance to the College as it strives to become a premier institution, not only in Grenada but across the region. She described the information shared as being interesting, important and valuable as the College was on a path to enhancing its impact in the country. Dr. Grenade said she is confident that the information shared would assist the College in the development and implementation of structures geared towards improved outputs.
The session on Corruption was facilitated by Mrs. Samorna Dowe-Mitchell, Acting Head of Investigations. She looked at the definition of corruption, its impact on society and how individuals can take responsibility for fighting it.
Speaking about the presentation, Mrs. Dowe-Mitchell said “once there is awareness of what corruption is, and a commitment to fighting against it, then I believe that we’re on the right track.”
Head of the Operations Department, Mrs. Henry-Greenidge, facilitated the discussion on Ethics and Integrity. She looked at the definition and types of ethics, specifically the utilitarian approach to ethics, which falls under normative ethics. Her presentation also addressed the relationship between ethics and integrity and in closing she challenged the participants to be ethical and walk in integrity.
Commenting on the Presentation, Mrs. Henry-Greenidge said “these are topics that generate much discussion, because our actions are a manifestation of our ethics or lack thereof; while our integrity comes from a greater depth of character. We should all strive to be persons of integrity.”
Code of Conduct and Conflict of Interest was facilitated by the Commission’s Legal and Compliance Officer, Mr. Akeyno Bartholomew. In addition to looking at conflict of interest, in the Code of Conduct, he referenced the guidelines of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
He mentioned cultural shifts that would have to take place to meet international obligations requiring the adoption of best practices.
Mr. Bartholomew discussed the differences between apparent, potential and real conflicts of interest and the importance of managing conflicts of interest in areas where they cannot be avoided.
“Managing conflict of interest is as equally important as avoiding it; and in small societies as ours, susceptible to conflicts of interest, identifying such conflicts and managing them are pivotal to anti-corruption efforts.”
Discussion throughout the day on each topic was robust with some participants acknowledging that the material shared, shed new light on issues they thought they knew.
The College administrators also expressed interest in the development of a Code of Ethics specific to the college in the near future.
