The shocking news in the latest report of Transparency International about which we commented yesterday is that Jamaica fell 23 places in a single year from 61 to 84, coming second to last in the Caribbean, with only Guyana below us.

This development must be placed squarely at the feet of the previous government. Indeed, since this rating is for 2006-2007, the responsibility cannot be palmed off on the Patterson regime. It is the administration of the immediate past Prime Minister - Mrs. Portia Simpson Miller - who must answer.

The PNP cannot remain silent, simply shrugging off this damning report as being of no consequence. When Don Wehby was appointed as Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance, they had no difficulty finding their voice. On the contrary, they were vociferous in their condemnations. If the PNP Opposition brushes this report aside, they will only have themselves to blame if the public declines to take their future policy pronouncements with any degree of seriousness.

As Mrs. Beth Aub, former general secretary of the Jamaica chapter of Transparency International, has pointed out, the Trafigura affair no doubt played a major role in our downgrading. It was an international scandal which, up to this day, has never been satisfactorily explained by the then governing party. No steps were taken by the previous government to investigate it and, indeed, some felt that steps of others to air the matter were met with no cooperation whatever. That this offence occurred was bad enough. But to have the reputation of the country dragged in the mud because of the actions of some members of one political party is reprehensible in the extreme.

The new government made the fight against corruption a central plank of their election campaign. Thankfully, they were not discouraged by national polls which showed that the corruption issue is a policy priority for a small minority of the population. We do not believe that the general public is indifferent to corruption. It is more that they are sceptical that any government will ever take firm and fearless steps in this area.

This is why leadership by the Bruce Golding-led Government is so crucial. All the new measures being proposed in procurement, contract awards and oversight, and the appointment of a Special Prosecutor need to be instituted without delay. Egregious cases of corrupt practices in the past government must be pursued aggressively. It is not too late to re-open Trafigura and the many other affairs. The olive branch of engagement cannot mean that we must cover up wrongdoings and let bygones be bygones in the corruption zone. Reconciliation can only come through truth, public exposure and the acceptance of full responsibility.

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