KINGSTON, Jamaica, Jun. 18, CMC – Cabinet Minister Dr. Andrew Wheatley has vowed to clear his name as he faces charges stemming from an Integrity Commission report into his financial affairs.
The anti-corruption body recommended that Wheatley face four charges, including illicit enrichment.
The recommendation was revealed Wednesday after the Integrity Commission’s report was tabled in the House of Representatives.
Wheatley, who is Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Science, Technology and Special Projects, is the first of eight parliamentarians being investigated by the Commission for possible illicit enrichment, to have a report tabled.
Illicit enrichment relates to public officials being unable to satisfactorily explain assets that exceed their lawful income.
Speaking in the House of Representatives on Wednesday after the report was tabled, Wheatley stated that he will be vindicated when the dust settles.
‘I have every intention of protecting my reputation. It is a matter that somewhere or the other can affect all of us as members in this House. And so my team of lawyers will bring to the fore, to the public, that I am innocent, that the conclusions are inaccurate and that we have a responsibility to encourage anyone from any humble beginning or otherwise, who wish to serve his or her country, not to be afraid because of persons who would want to defame them or destroy their reputation,’ he said.
His statement came after strict instructions were given not to venture too far into the report.
The Commission said Wheatley was given the opportunity to account for how he acquired the assets, but a satisfactory explanation was not provided.
The Integrity Commission is recommending that Wheatley be charged with knowingly making false statements in statutory declarations under two pieces of legislation, failing without reasonable cause to provide information requested by the Director of Information and Complaints, and illicit enrichment.
In a statement, Wheatley rejected as ‘false, inaccurate and grossly misleading’ the Integrity Commission’s claim of assets being disproportionate to his earnings.