Cited for dragging his feet on lawsuit he filed against the commission in May 2017

Durrant Pate/Contributor

Jamaica’s anti-corruption agency, the Integrity Commission has issued a stinging criticism of former Member of Parliament (MP) Ian Hayles, who petitioned the court back in 2017, seeing an order to prevent it from releasing the findings into a probe it carried out regarding allegations made against him.

In fact, the commission has cited Hayles, the former MP for Western Hanover for dragging his feet on the lawsuit he filed against the commission back in May 2017. In that lawsuit, Hayles is seeking leave to apply for judicial review with a view to obtaining various orders, including an injunction to prevent the tabling of the report.

The report is in respect of an allegation that the then parliamentarian constructed a building in Hanover without the relevant approvals having been obtained.

Detailing events leading up to today

In its 2021-2022 report, which was tabled in Parliament yesterday (July 5), the commission raised this issue, “as matter of concern, which must be mentioned at this time”.

Retired Justice Seymour Panton, chairman of the Integrity Commisson, said that “in March 2017, that is, more than five years ago, a parliamentarian, Mr Ian Hayles, filed a suit in respect of the tabling in Parliament of a report of the Contractor-General… . Now, I realise that the matter is before the Supreme Court so I will not comment on the merit or otherwise of the suit.”

Continuing, Panton emphasised: “I must inform the Parliament and the general public that the claim is not being pursued by the claimant with any urgency. In 2017, the matter was listed on three occasions for a total of eight court days – May 11 and 12; July 24, 26 and 27; December 4-6. In 2020, the matter was listed on two occasions for a total of six court days in April and July. In 2022, the matter was listed on May 2, and again on May 9-13.”

He advised that the matter was not taken on any of these days, and the Commission has been reliably informed that this was due to the claimant not being ready to proceed.

Panton advised that, on one occasion, May 2, the Commission and the claimant were not ready to proceed.

As such, the matter has now been fixed for hearing on November 2 and 3, 2022 before Chief Justice Bryan Sykes.

According to Panton, a retired Appeals Court president, ”if the claimant is still not ready to proceed in November, the Commission’s attorneys-at-law will be instructed to move immediately for the claim to be struck out”.

In conclusion, Panton argued that “five and a half years is too long a time for a matter of this nature to be still pending. It is reasonable for the public to have been expecting that the claimant would have been champing at the bit to have this matter determined by the Court”.