By Vernon Daley, Staff Reporter 
WHEN IT comes to fighting corruption, the Government seems to have put its money where its mouth is.
According to the 2003/2004 Estimates of Expenditure, tabled in the House of Representatives last Thursday, the P.J. Patterson-led administration has more than doubled the budgetary allocation to the Corruption Prevention Commission.
The Commission will receive just over $21.3 million to run its operations for this financial year compared to the $9.7 million it was allocated for 2002/2003.
Of this year's allocation, $8.3 million will go to salaries for staff; $1.8 million to travel and subsistence; $1.7 million to rental and equipment; $90,000 to public utilities; $6.1 million for other goods and services; and $3.4 million for capital equipment.
David Grey, secretary/manager of the Commission, told The Sunday Gleaner that he was pleased about the allocation, noting that it would be sufficient to carry out the work of the body, barring "any unforeseen circumstances".
"They (Government) have given us all we requested," Mr. Grey added.
Prime Minister Patterson officially launched the Commission at an elaborate ceremony at the Jamaica Conference Centre on March 11.
During his speech, Mr. Patterson said the Commission should be seen as another tool in the already extensive system of safeguarding national integrity. He said his Government would give its unwavering support to the body which will be responsible for detecting and rooting out corruption from the public sector.
"I am confident that this Commission can and will be successful," the Prime Minister said. He added that a Police Force, free of corruption and a vigilant public, was crucial in ensuring that the Commission was able to carry out its job.
There were several delays in the start-up of the Commission, even though the Corruption Prevention Act had been passed some two years before. The body now has the green light to carry out its work with the recent parliamentary approval of the regulations which will give it operational guidelines.
In keeping with the regulations, all public servants earning $2 million and above, as well as those who occupy sensitive posts in the public service, will be required to file declarations. All members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force and the Jamaica Defence Force will also be required to file declarations to the Commission.
In fact, April 30 is the deadline for an estimated 25,000 public servants to file declarations of their assets and liabilities to the anti-corruption body.
"We have already started to receive declarations," Mr. Grey said. He, however, declined to identify the Government bodies from which these declarations had come.
