Former Cabinet Secretary Hazel Spencer says rotating staff across government departments could help restore accountability and reduce corruption, citing his experience as a customs officer where regular reassignment was standard practice.
Speaking during the question-and-answer segment of the Vehicle Gate town hall meeting, Spencer said one of the biggest weaknesses in today’s system is allowing employees to remain in the same positions for extended periods, which he argued fosters familiarity, complacency, and sometimes collusion.
“In my days in the Customs Department, we were rotated,” Spencer recalled. “Sometimes you end up down at the distillery, sometimes at the airport, sometimes you board a ship — all different functions in customs. You could not get too comfortable in one place.”
He said regular staff rotation not only improved efficiency but also served as a deterrent to corruption by limiting opportunities for officers to form inappropriate alliances. “That’s how we maintained integrity,” he said, adding that consistent changes in assignments helped create a natural system of checks and balances.
Spencer recommended that the same approach be reinstated across key ministries and statutory bodies, especially those handling procurement and public finances. He said this kind of administrative reform would strengthen internal oversight and help prevent future scandals like the alleged EC $17 million vehicle procurement controversy currently under public scrutiny.
The former Cabinet Secretary emphasized that internal safeguards such as staff rotation must operate alongside strict financial procedures, including Cabinet approval, Finance Ministry verification, and Treasury oversight. He said these measures only work if supported by honest leadership and a culture of discipline.
“People talk about systems failing,” Spencer said. “But systems only fail when people stop doing what they are supposed to do. Rotation reminds officers that public office is about service, not comfort.”
His remarks added to a chorus of calls from panelists at the town hall for reforms to strengthen accountability, promote transparency, and rebuild public confidence in the government’s financial management systems. Spencer said good governance depends on both strong institutions and ethical conduct from those entrusted to run them.
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Well said And the PM said the same thing. But will the political will be there? Too many sacred cows are embedded in the system. Start with an investigation of customs and customs officers. Tell us how an officer working for $3,000 and $4,000 a month can own million dollar homes, not home, and multiple expensive vehicles. And while on customs there are over 100 vehicles with ABC numbers meaning Customs. And then after Customs deal with corruption in the Police. Yesterday I had to detour from Popeshead Street because of vehicles parked. Popeshead Street is no parking on both sides of the road.But it is common knowledge that the Police have been paid off by certain businesses. The PM must make a pledge to this Nation to clean up all the corruption. We are where we are today with this public scandal but everyone knew it was going on but no one did anything. A former high official at Public Works on a government salary is now building his second apartment building. That is public knowledge. Another one built a whole building on Redcliffe Street not only with government material but also government workers. That is public knowledge. He was promoted and reassigned.
😂..my goodness me.
These people speak of corruption like you just painting a house and one side of the brush isn’t applying anymore paint, so you just turn the brush over to the other side.. 😂.
No sir, in this case what you do, is to dip the brush back in the paint and get fresh paint on the brush so you can have a more even paint stroke.
So dip back in the public sector(the paint) and get some fresh paint.. That’s what you should have suggested. And might I say, a better standard of paint, because the current paint is trash.