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THE INTEGRITY IN PUBLIC LIFE ACT, 2000
Arrangem ent of Section s
PART I
P RELIMINARY
S ection
1. Short t it le and commencement
2. I nt er pr et a tion
3. Applica t ion
P ART II
E STABLISHMENT , P OWERS AND F UNCTIONS OF INTEGRITY COMMISSION
4. Establishment of Integri ty Commission5. Funct ions of the Commission
6. Res igna t ion
7. Regist ra r
8 . Vacancy in membership
9 . Remunera t ion and s ta ff
10. Annual Repor t to Par li ament
PART III
F INANCIAL DISCLOSURE
11. Duty to furnish declarat ion
12. Contents of declarat ion
13. Request for fur ther par t iculars
14. Regis ter of In terest s
15. Further enquiry into declarat ion
16. Powers of the t r ibunal
17. Matter t o be referred to Director of Public Prosecutions
18. Findings of t r ibunal
19. In dem nit y
20. Duty as to secrecy
21. Offences relating to declaration
22. B lin d t r us t
PART IV
CODE OF CONDUCT
23. Applicat ion of Par t V
24. Use of office
25. Insider informat ion
26. I nflu en ce
27. Gift s
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28. Confident ia li ty
29. Confl ict of interest30. Disclosure t o Service Commission
31. Commission to report breach of his Part
PART V
P O WE R O F INVESTIGATION
32. C om pla in t s
33. Power of Commission to investigate
34. Special powers of investigation
35. Protection of informat ion
36. Request for opinion
37. Commission to act in public interest
38. Notice of adverse report
39. Exemption from l iabil ity
40. Power to en ter cont ract s
41. Regu la t ions
42. Income Tax Act
43. Repea l
44. Transit ional provisions
SCHEDULE
ii
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Legal Su pplem ent Part A to the T rinid ad a nd T obago Gazette, Vol. 39,
No. 212, 1st November, 2000
Fifth Session Fifth Pa rliam ent Republic of Trin idad
and Tobago
REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Act N o. 83 of 2000
[L.S.]
AN ACT to provide for th e esta blishm ent of the In tegrityC o m m i s s i o n ; t o m a k e n e w p r o v i s i o n s f o r t h eprevention of corruption of persons in public life byproviding for public disclosure; to regulate theconduct of persons exercising public functions; top r e s e r v e a n d p r o m o t e t h e i n t e g r i t y o f p u b l i co f f i c i a l s a n d i n s t i t u t i o n s , a n d f o r m a t t e r sincidental t heret o.
[Assented to 27th October, 2000]
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WHEREAS i t is enacted inter alia by subsection (1) of
section 13 of th e Const itut ion th at an Act of Par liam entto which that section applies may expressly declare
that it shall have effect even though inconsistent with
sections 4 an d 5 of th e Const itu tion a nd, if any Act d oes
so declare, it shall have effect accordingly:
And whereas it is provided by subsection (2) of the
sa id sec t ion 13 o f the Cons t i tu t ion tha t an Ac t o f
Pa rliament to which t ha t section a pplies is one t he Bill
f o r w h i c h h a s b e e n p a s s e d b y b o t h H o u s e s o f
Parliament and at the final vote thereon in each House
ha s been supported by the votes of not less tha n t hr ee-fifth s of all th e member s of th at House:
And whereas it is necessary and expedient that the
provisions of this Act shall have effect even though
inconsistent with sections 4 and 5 of the Constitution.
ENACTED by the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago as
follows:
PART I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) T h i s Act m a y b e ci t e d a s t h e I n t e g r i t y i n
Pu blic Life Act , 2000.
(2) This Act comes into operat ion on such date as
is fixed by the Pr esident by Pr oclam at ion.
(3) T h i s Act s h a l l h a v e e ffe ct e v e n t h o u g h
inconsistent with sections 4 and 5 of the Constitution.
2. In t his Act
assets means all property, including money,beneficially held in Trinidad and Tobago or
e l s ew h e r e a n d a l l r i g h t s a n d b e n e f it s
enjoyed on a continu ing basis;
Comm ission mea ns th e In tegrit y Comm ission
established un der section 4;
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Preamble
Enactment
Short title,
commencement and
inconsistency with
the Constitut ion
Interpretation
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C h a i r m a n m e a n s t h e C h a i r m a n of t h e
Commission;dependent child means the child of a person,
including a child of the family, step-childor adopted child, whether of full age orn o t , w h o i s u n m a r r i e d a n d b e i n gma inta ined by such person;
income mean s a l l income, f rom wha tevers o u r c e d e r i v e d a c q u i r e d i n o r o u t o f Trinidad a nd Tobago, whether directly orindirectly, a s m oney or moneys wort h an dincludes all receipts by way of salary, fees,
w a g e s , p e r q u i s i t e s , p r o f i t s , g a i n s ,emoluments, rents, interest, commissions,bonus, pension, annuity or benefit and allincome within the meaning of the IncomeTax Act;
i n v e s t i g a t i n g o f f i c e r m e a n s a p e r s o nauthorised by the Commission to exercisethe powers o f an inves t iga t ing o f f ice run der th is Act;
liability includes any obligation to pay ort r a n s f e r m o n e y or m o n e y s w o r t h i n
Trin idad a nd Tobago or elsewhere;person in public life means a person referred
to or listed in t he Schedule;
persons exercising public functions includesall persons holding office under the PublicService, J udicial an d Legal Service, PoliceService, Teaching Service and StatutoryAuth orit ies Service Comm ission, a s wellas Senators, members of the DiplomaticService and Advisers to the Government;
p u b l i c b o d y i n c l u d e s l o c a l a n d p u b l i c
au th orit ies of all descriptions;public officer' has the meaning ascribed to it
in section 3 of th e Const itu tion;
spouse in relation to a person in public lifemeans a pe rson to whom the pe rson inpublic life is married or living with in a
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conjugal relationship outside of marriage,
but does not include a person with whomt h e p e r s o n i n p u b l ic li fe h a s m a d e aseparation agreement, or if their supportobligations and family property have beendealt with by a cour t order;
tribunal means a tribunal established under
section 15.
3. This Act applies to every person in public life and
to per sons exercising public fun ctions.
PART II
ESTABLISHMENT, POWE RS AN D FU NCTI ON S OF INTEGRITY
COMMISSION
4. (1) There is established an Integrity Commission
consisting of a Chairman, Deputy Chairman and three
other members who shall be persons of integrity and
high stan ding.
(2) At least one member of th e Commission sha ll
be an at torney-at -law of at least ten years experience.
(3) At least one member of th e Commission sha ll
be a char tered or certified accoun ta nt .
(4) T h e Ch a i r m a n a n d ot h e r m e m b e r s of t h e
Commission shall be appointed by the President after
consu ltat ion with t he Pr ime Minister a nd t he Leader of
the Opposition.
(5) A person sh all not be qualified to hold office as
a member of the Commission where he is a person in
public life or a person exercising a public function or aperson who is n ot a citizen of Trin idad an d Tobago.
(6) Three member s of th e Comm ission of whom
one shall be the Chairman or Deputy Chairman, shall
const itut e a quoru m.
Application
Establishment of
Integrity
Commission
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5. (1) The Commission shall
(a) carry out those functions and exercise thepowers specified in this Act;
(b) receive, exam ine an d r etain all declara tionsfiled with it un der t his Act;
(c) m a k e s u c h e n q u i r i e s a s i t c o n s i d e r snecessary in order to verify or determinethe accuracy of a declaration filed underth is Act;
(d ) c o m p i l e a n d m a i n t a i n a R e g i s t e r o f Interests;
(e) r e c e i v e a n d i n v e s t i g a t e c o m p l a i n t sregarding any alleged breaches of this Actor the commission or any suspected offenceunder the Prevention of Corruption Act;
(f) i n v e s t i g a t e t h e c o n d u c t o f a n y p e r s o nf a l l i n g u n d e r t h e p u r v i e w o f t h eCommission which, in the opinion of theCommission, may be considered dishonestor conducive to corruption;
(g) examine the practices and procedures ofpub l ic bod ies , in o rder to fac i l i t a te thediscovery of corrupt practices;
(h ) ins t ruc t , adv ise and ass i s t the heads o f
public bodies of changes in practices orp r o c e d u r e s wh i c h m a y b e n e c e s s a r y t oredu ce th e occur ren ce of corru pt pra ctices;
(i) car ry ou t p rograms o f pub l ic educa t ioni n t e n d e d t o f o s t e r a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f sta nda rd of integrity;
(j) perform such other functions and exercisesuch powers as ar e required by this Act.
(2) In th e exercise of its powers an d perform an ceof its fun ctions un der t his Act, t he Commission
(a) sha l l no t be sub jec t to the d i rec t ion o r
cont rol of an y oth er per son or a ut hority;(b) m a y i n a l l c a s e s w h e r e i t c o n s i d e r s i t
a p p r op r i a t e t o d o s o, m a k e u s e o f t h eservices or draw upon the expertise of anyl a w e n f o r c e m e n t a g e n c y o r t h e P u b l i cService;
Functions of the
Commission
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(c) s h a l l h a v e t h e p o w e r t o a u t h o r i s e
investigations, summon witnesses, requirethe production of any reports, documents,other relevant information, and to do allsuch th ings as i t considers necessary orexpedient for th e pur pose of car rying out itsfunctions.
6. (1) A member of the Commission m ay at any timeresign his office by instrument in writing addressed tot h e C h a i r m a n w h o s h a l l f o r t h w i t h c a u s e i t t o b eforwarded to the Pres ident ; and the Chairman may
resign his office by instr um ent in writing addressed tothe Pr esident.
(2) A person sh all cease to be a member of th eC o m m i s s i o n f r o m t h e d a t e o f t h e r e c e i p t o f t h einstrument by the Pr esident.
7. (1) There shall be a Registra r t o the Commissionwho sha ll be a pu blic officer.
(2) The duties of the Registrar sh all be
(a) to att end t he m eetings of the Commission;(b) t o r e c o r d t h e p r o c e e d i n g s o f t h e
Commission and keep the minutes of eachmeeting in proper form; and
(c) generally to perform such duties connectedwith the work of the Commission as theCommission ma y require.
8. (1) A v a ca n cy in t h e m e m b e r s h i p of t h eCommission occurs
(a) on the death, resignation or revocation ofth e appointm ent of a m ember;
(b) on the absence o f a member f rom th ree
consecutive meetings of the Commission,u n l e s s t h e a b s e n ce i s a p p r o ve d b y t h eP r e s i d en t a f t e r con s u l t a t i on w it h t h eChairman;
(c) on the expiration of the term specified in amember s instr um ent of appointm ent.
Vacancy in
membership
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Resignation
Registrar
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(2) A member of th e Commission ma y be removed
from office by the President acting in his discretion forina bility t o discha rge t he fun ctions of his office whet herarising from infirmity of mind or body or any othercause, or for misbeha viour.
(3) T h e a p p oi n t m e n t of a m e m b e r of t h eCommission and the termination of his appointmentwhether by death, resignation or otherwise shall bepublished in t he Gazette.
9. (1) The salaries and allowances of the Chairma n,other members of the Commission and the Registrar
s h a l l b e d e t e r m i n e d b y t h e S a l a r i e s R e v i e wCommission.
(2) T h e C om m i s s i on s h a l l b e p r o vi d e d w it hadequate staff for the prompt and efficient discharge ofits functions un der t he Act.
(3) The sta ff of the Commission shall be publicofficers appoint ed in accorda nce with section 121 of th eC on s t i t u t i on a n d t h e P r e s id e n t m a y cr e a t e s u chdifferent grades of investigating officers as he thinksfit.
(4) All expenses incurr ed by th e Comm ission for
t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h i s Ac t s h a l l b e a c h a r g e o n t h eConsolidated Fu nd.
(5) The Comm ission sh all appoint or employ, onsuch terms and condit ions as i t thinks f i t , any suchother officers and employees as it thinks necessary forth e proper car rying out of its functions un der t his Act;
(6) T h e a p p r o p r i a t e S e r v ice C om m i s s i on m a yapp rove the t ra nsfer of an y officer in th e Pu blic Serviceto any office within the Commission and any publicoff icer so t ransferred shal l , in re la t ion to gra tui ty ,pension or other allowances, be treated as continuing in
th e service of th e Governm ent .
10. The Commission shall not later than 31st Marchi n e a c h y e a r , m a k e a r e p o r t t o P a r l i a m e n t o f i t sactivities in the preceding year and the report shall betabled in the Senate and the House of Representatives
Annual Report t o
Parliament
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Remuneration and
staff
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not later than 31st May, so, however, that the reports
shall not disclose particulars of any declaration filedwith th e Commission.
PART II I
F INANCIAL DISCLOSURE
11. (1) A p er s on s h a l l , w it h i n t h r e e m on t h s of becoming a person in public life, complete and file withthe Commission in the prescribed form, a declaration ofh is income, assets and l iabi l i t ies in respect of theprevious year and, thereaf ter , on 31st May in each
succeeding year that he is a person in public life, heshall file further declarations of his income, assets andliabilities.
(2) N o t w it h s t a n d i n g t h e p r o vi s ion s o f s u b -section (1), th e Comm ission m ay, in an y par ticular case,for good cause, extend the time for the furnishing of adeclar at ion for a period not exceeding six mont hs.
(3) The declaration sha ll be in such form a s theCommission may from time to time prescribe and mayb e a c c o m p a n i e d , i f t h e d e c l a r a n t s o wi s h e s , b y as ta tement re la t ing to h is net worth as indicated by
deta ils of his income, ass ets a nd liabilities.(4) The declara tion sh all be filed irrespective of
the fact that during the year in respect of which thedeclaration is required, or in the following year, thedeclar an t ceased t o be a per son in pu blic life.
(5) Where a person in public life dies, th ere shallbe no obligation on the administrator of his estate tofile the declara tion which h e would have been r equiredto file, had he lived.
(6) Where a person who is required to do so failsto file a declaration in accordance with this section or
without reasonable cau se, fails to fur nish par ticular s inaccordance with section 13 or fails to file the statemento f r e g i s t r a b l e i n t e r e s t s u n d e r s e c t i o n 1 4 , t h eCommission shall publish such fact in the Gazette andat least one daily newspaper in circulation in Trinidadan d Tobago.
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Duty to furnish
declaration
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(7) The Commission ma y, at anytime after th e
publication referred to in section (6), make an ex parteapplication to the High Court for an order directing
such person to comply with the Act and the Court may,
in add i t ion to making such an o rder , impose such
conditions as it t hinks fit.
(8) A p er s o n w h o fa i l s t o com p l y w it h t h e
directions of the Cour t, comm its a n offence an d is liable
o n c on v i ct i o n t o a f i n e o f on e h u n d r e d a n d f ift y
th ousa nd dollar s.
12. (1) A declarat ion r equired under t his Act, shall
include such particulars as are known to the declarant,
of the income, assets and l iabil i t ies of himself , his
spouse an d his dependent children.
(2) Notwith sta nding subsection (1), where
(a) the spouse was not ordinarily living with
the declarant for a continuous period of six
months dur ing the pe r iod in re la t ion to
which th e declara tion was made; or
(b) a dependent child was not ordinarily living
with the declarant at any time during the
period in relation to which the declaration
was made,
t h e p a r t i c i l a r s r e q u i r e d t o b e f u r n i s h e d b y
subsection (1) shall be limited to assets held by the
spouse or child in trust for, or as agent of the declarant,
except t ha t n oth ing in t his section sh all be const ru ed as
prec lud ing t he Commiss ion from r equ i r ing f rom a
declara nt , any additiona l particulars.
(3) Where a person in public life holds money or
other property in trust for another person, he shall so
state in his declaration but shall not be required to
disclose th e term s of the tr ust .
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Contents of
declaration
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(4) For t he purposes of a declaration un der this
Act, the income, assets and liabilities of a person inpublic life include the income, assets and liabilities
acquired, held or incurred by any other person as his
agent or on his behalf.
(5) W h e r e , in a d e cl a r a t i o n fi le d w it h t h e
Comm ission, a person in p ublic life discloses a n income
which is insu fficient to support th e accret ion in value of
th e net assets disclosed so as t o raise the inference th at
there must have been other income to account for the
extent of the acquisition of such assets, the person in
public life will be deemed to have been in possession of
such income which has not been disclosed and the onus
shall be on him to establish the source of that further
income.
13. (1) T h e C om m i s s ion s h a l l e xa m i n e e ve r y
declaration that is f i led and ensure that i t complies
with t he requ irements of the Act , and ma y reques t
fr o m a d e cl a r a n t , a n y i n for m a t i on or e x p la n a t i on
relevan t t o a declara tion m ade by him a nd wh ich would
assist in its examinat ion.
(2) The Commission may require that
(a) a d e c l a r a n t f u r n i s h s u c h p a r t i c u l a r s
relating to his financial affairs as may be
consider ed necessar y;
(b) a dec la ran t o r h i s du ly appo in ted agen t
attend at the offices of the Commission in
order to verify his declar at ion;
(c) a declaration be certified by a chartered or
certified accountant.
(3) W h e r e , u p on a n e xa m i n a t i on u n d e r
subsec t ion (1 ) , the Commiss ion i s sa t i s f i ed tha t a
declara tion h as been fully made, it sh all forwa rd t o the
person in public life, a Certificate of Compliance.
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14. (1) A person in pu bl ic l i fe sha l l f ile with his
declara tion u nder section 11, an additiona l stat ement ofregistrable inter ests in th e prescribed form , which sh all
cont ain th e inform at ion r equired by subsection (3).
(2) T h e R e gi s t r a r o f t h e C om m i s s i on s h a l l
c o m p i l e a n d c a u s e t o b e e n t e r e d i n a R e g i s t e r o f
I n t e r e t s , a l l i n for m a t i on f u r n i s h e d p u r s u a n t t o
subsection (1) and shall at the request of any member
of the public, perm it t he in spection of such Regist er.
(3) A s t a t e m e n t of r e gi s t r a b l e in t e r e t s f il ed
under subsection (1) shall contain information relatingto a person in pu blic life in respect of
(a) par ticular s of an y directorships held in an y
compa ny or other corpora te body;
(b) particulars of any contract made with the
State;
(c) the name or description of any company,
par tne rsh ip o r a ssoc ia t ion in which the
person is an investor;
(d ) a concise description of any trust to whichth e person is a beneficiary or tr ust ee;
(e) beneficial interest held in a ny land;
(f) an y fun d to which t he person cont ributes;
(g) p a r t i c u l a r s o f a n y p o l i t i c a l , t r a d e o r
professiona l associat ion t o which t he per son
belongs;
(h ) particulars relating to sources of income;
and
(i) any other substantial interest whether of a
pecun iary na tu re or n ot, which he considers
may appear to ra i se a mate r ia l conf l i c t
between his privat e int erests an d his public
duty.
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Register of Interest
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(4) A p e r s on i n p u b l ic li fe s h a l l n ot i f y t h e
R e gi s t r a r of a n y c h a n g e s wh i ch m a y o ccu r i n h i sregistrable interests, within six weeks of such change
occurring.
(5) Not h i n g i n t h i s s e ct i on s h a l l b e t a k e n t o
require disclosur e of the a ctu al am oun t or extent of any
financial benefit, contribution or interests.
15. W h e r e u p o n t h e e xa m i n a t i on r e fe r r e d t o in
section 13, the Commission is of the opinion that it
should enquire further into any declaration so as to
ascert ain whether th ere has been a full disclosur e, it
may advise the President to appoint a tribunal of two
or more of its m embers to condu ct a n enqu iry to verify
the contents of the declaration or the statement filed
with th e Commission.
16. (1) A tribunal appointed under section 15 may
(a) request in writing, that a person in public
life or any other person who the tribunal
reasonably believes has knowledge of the
matters to be enquired into in accordance
with th is Act , a t tend before the t r ibunal
and furnish such further information and
documents as it may require, within such
tim e as m ay be specified;
(b) s u b j e c t t o s e c t i o n 1 7 ( 2 ) , r e q u i r e t h e
Commissioner of Police or any other public
o f f i c e r , t o m a k e a v a i l a b l e t o i t , a n y
information received in the course of any
investigation carried out into the subjectmatter of an enquiry under this Act, and
may direct the Commissioner of Police or
such o ther office r t o make such fu r t he r
enquir ies and invest igat ions as i t th inks
necessary; an d
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declarations
Powers of the
tribunal
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(c) summon witnesses, require the production
of documents and do all such things as itconsiders necessary or expedient for the
pur pose of car rying out it s functions.
(2) In conducting an enquiry under section 15,
the tribunal shall have and exercise the powers of a
Commission of Enquiry under the Commissions of
Enquiry Act, save that its proceedings shall be held in
private.
(3) An enqu i ry under sec t ion 15 sha l l not be
commenced after f ive years from the date a person
ceases to be a person in public life.
17. (1) Where the Comm ission is satisfied, on th e
basis of an en quiry condu cted u nder section 15 tha t
(a) a breach of any of the provisions of this Act
h a s b e e n c o m m i t t e d , i t s h a l l t a k e s u c h
action as it deems appropriate; or
(b) an offence has been comm itt ed, it sha ll
(i) forth with r efer th e matt er to the
Director of Publ ic Prosecut ions
together with a certified copy of
the declaration in question and a
report of its findings; an d
(ii) forwar d to the Pr esident , a report
of its findings.
(2) Where the Commission determines that the
subject ma tt er of an enquiry un der section 15 is
(a) under investigation by the police or that a
cha rge ha s been laid; or
(b) the subject matter of any proceedings in acourt of law,
the Commission shall hold its own enquiry in abeyance,
pending final disposition of that investigation and those
proceedings.
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Matter s to be
referred to Director
of Public
Prosecutions
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18. Where , f rom an enqu i ry under sec t ion 15 , a
tr ibunal f inds that a declarant had in fact made fulldisclosure in his declaration, it shall, if so requested in
writing by the declarant, publish a statement to that
effect in t he Gazette.
19. Where upon a n enquiry a tr ibuna l finds that the
declaration which gave rise to the enquiry was in fact
f u l l a n d p r o p e r , t h e d e c l a r a n t i s e n t i t l e d t o b e
indemnified in respect of all reasonable expenses as
appr oved by the tr ibunal.
20. (1) Declarations filed with the Commission andthe records of the Commission in respect of those
declarations are secret and confidential and shall not
be made public, except where a particular declaration
or record is required to be produced for the purpose of
or in connection with any court proceedings against, or
enquiry in respect of a declarant under this Act, the
Per jury Act , the Prevent ion of Corrupt ion Act , the
Exchange Control Act or the Commissions of Enquiry
Act.
(2) W h e r e a d e cl a r a t i on f il e d w i t h t h eCommission is required to be produced for the purpose
of any proceedings under subsection (1), a copy of the
declaration certified by the Registrar may be delivered
t o t h e D i r e c t o r o f P u b l i c P r o s e c u t i o n s u p o n a n
app licat ion being ma de by wa y of affidavit.
(3) The copy referred to in subsection (2) shall be
admissible in any proceedings under subsection (1) and
sha ll be prima facie evidence of the cont ent s t her eof.
(4) Every member of the Commission and every
person performing any function in the service of, or asa n e m p l o y e e o f t h e C o m m i s s i o n s h a l l t r e a t a l l
declarations and records and information relating to
s u c h d e c l a r a t i o n s a n d i n f o r m a t i o n a s s e c r e t a n d
confidential a nd sh all mak e an d subscribe to an oath of
secrecy to th at effect before a J ust ice of th e Pea ce.
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(5) Every person r equired under subsection (4) to
d e a l wi t h m a t t e r s s p e c i f i e d t h e r e i n a s s e c r e t a n dconfidential who at an ytime comm un icat es or a tt empts
t o c o m m u n i c a t e s u c h i n f o r m a t i o n o r a n y t h i n g
contained in such documents to any person other than
a per son t o whom he is au th orised un der th is Act, sha ll
be gu i l ty o f an o f fence and be l i ab le on summary
conviction to a fine of two hundred and fifty thousand
dollar s and t en year s imprisonm ent.
21. (1) A person in pu blic life who
(a) fails, without reasonable cause, to furnishto th e Commission a declara tion, or furt her
particulars which he is required to furnish
in accordance with the provisions of the
Act;
(b) k n o wi n g ly m a k e s a d e cl a r a t i on t h a t i s
false;
(c) fails, without reasonable cause to give such
i n f o r m a t i o n o r e x p l a n a t i o n a s t h e
Commission or a tr ibunal ma y require;
(d ) fails, without r easona ble cau se to att end an
e n q u i r y b e i n g con d u c t e d b y a t r i b u n a l
appointed under section 15 or knowingly
gives false inform at ion in su ch en quiry,
i s g u i l t y o f a n o f f e n c e , a n d l i a b l e o n s u m m a r y
conviction to a fine of two hundred and fifty thousand
dollar s an d to imprisonm ent for a term of ten years.
(2) Where, a person in public life is deemed to
ha ve been in possession of und isclosed income or a ssetsand fails to account for such further income or assets,
or where upon an enquiry, it is determined that such
other income or assets have existed and the person in
p u b l i c l i fe d e l i b e r a t e l y o m i t t e d t o d i s cl os e s u c h
i n f o r m a t i o n i n t h e d e c l a r a t i o n f i l e d w i t h t h e
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Commission, he shall be liable on summary conviction
to a fine of two hu ndr ed an d fifty t housand dollar s a ndimprisonment for a term of ten years, and where the
o ffe n c e i n v o l ve s t h e d e l i b e r a t e n o n - d i s cl os u r e of
propert y th e Cour t ma y, in addition
(a) where the property involved is situated in
Tr in idad an d Tobago, decla re th a t i t be
forfeited to the State;
(b) where t he p r oper ty involved i s s i tua ted
outside of Trinidad and Tobago, order that
an amount equivalent to the value of the
p r o p e r t y (t h e v a l u e t o b e a s s e s s e d a sd i r e ct e d b y t h e C ou r t ) , b e p a i d b y t h e
person in pu blic life to the St at e.
(3) Pr opert y acquired from a person r eferr ed to in
subsect ion (1) by a bona f id e p u r c h a s e r f o r v a l u e
with out n otice of any offence of tha t person a s pr ovided
for in this section is not l iable to forfeiture, but an
amount equivalent to the value of the property or the
price paid by the purchaser, whichever is greater, shall
be paid by the pers on in pu blic life to the St at e.
( 4 ) P a y m e n t o f a l l s u m s d u e t o t h e S t a t ep u r s u a n t t o p a r a g r a p h (b) of subsect ion (1) or to
subsection (2) ma y be enforced in like man ner as a debt
due t o th e Sta te a nd a ny proceedings th ereon on behalf
of th e Stat e may be taken su mma rily.
(5) No prosecution of an offence under this Act
other than an offence under sect ion 20(5) , may be
instituted
(a) without t he wr itten consent of the Director
of Pu blic Pr osecut ions ; or
(b) af te r f ive years f rom the da te when the
person in respect of whose declaration or
financial affairs the alleged offence was
committed, ceased to be a person in public
life.
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22. (1) Where it appears to the Commission that a
breach o f th i s Ac t may have been commit ted o r aconflict of interest may have arisen, it shall order a
person in public life to place his assets or part thereof
in a blind trust for the purposes of this Act on such
terms and condi t ions as the Commission considers
appropriate and file a copy of the trust deed with the
Commission.
(2) Where th e assets of a person in public life are
placed in a blind trust, he need not in his declaration
give more particulars of those assets than the amountand description of these assets placed in that trust and
th e dat e of so doing.
(3) Notwithsta nding an y oth er law relat ing to th e
d u t i e s o f t r u s t e e s , a t r u s t c o m p a n y m a n a g i n g t h e
assets of a person in public life by way of a blind trust
shall reply fully to any enquiries of the Commission
relating to the n atu re an d man agement of the assets in
the blind tr ust.
(4) A b lind t ru s t i s crea t ed when a pe rson inpublic life enters into an agreement with a qualified
tr ust compa ny whereby
(a) all or an y part of his assets a re conveyed to
t h e t r u s t c o m p a n y f o r i t s m a n a g e m e n t ,
administration and control, in its absolute
discretion without recour se or report t o the
persons beneficially ent itled to those asset s;
(b) income derived from the management of
the assets i s to be dis t r ibuted to h im as
agreed;
(c) should the assets be converted into other
assets, that fact is not to be communicated
to him, unti l he ceases to be a person in
public life; an d
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(d ) after he ceases to be a person in public life,
proper and full accounting is to be made toh i m , a s t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s o f t h e
mana gement of the tru st r equire.
(5) A trust company is a qualified trust company
where
(a) it is incorporated in Trinidad and Tobago
an d is car rying on bu siness in Trinidad a nd
Tobago;
(b) no more than five per cent of the issued
shares in the trust company or its affiliate
is held by the person in public life enteringinto an agreement with it, or by any other
person associated with him; and
(c) t h e p e r s o n i n p u b l i c l i f e h o l d s n o
directorship or office in the trust company
or its a ffiliates.
(6) A company is the affiliate of another where it
holds more th an five per cent of the issued sha res in it.
(7) For the purposes of this section, a person is
associated with an oth er where th at other is
(a) th e spouse or child of th e person;
(b) the partner of the person in a profession,
trade, or commercial undertaking; or
(c) a corporation and any person mentioned in
paragraph (a) t o (b) controls the corpora-
t i o n , i t s h o l d i n g c o r p o r a t i o n o r a
corpora tion affiliat ed with eith er.
(8) In su bsection (7)
(a) child means a child whether of full age or
no t an d inc ludes a ch i ld of th e fami lywit h i n t h e m e a n i n g o f t h e Ma t r i m on i a l
Proceedings and Property Act;
(b) control shall be construed in accordance
with Rule 3 of the Third Schedule of the
Corporation Tax Act.
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PART IV
CODE OF CONDUCT
23. This Pa rt applies to a person in public life an d to
all per sons exercising pu blic functions.
24. (1) A person to whom this Par t appl ies shal l
ensure that he performs his functions and administers
the public resources for which he is responsible in an
effective an d efficient m an ner an d sha ll
(a) b e f a i r a n d i m p a r t i a l i n e x e r c i s i n g h i s
public dut y;(b) afford no undue preferential treatment to
any group or individual;
(c) a r r a n g e h i s p r i v a t e i n t e r e s t s w h e t h e r
pecun iary or otherwise in such a ma nn er as
to maintain public confidence and trust in
his int egrity.
(2) A person t o whom th is Pa rt applies sha ll not
(a) use h is office for t he im proper a dvan cemen t
o f h i s o wn o r h i s f a m i l y s p e r s o n a l o r
f inancia l in teres ts or the in teres t of anyperson;
(b) e n g a g e in a n y t r a n s a c t i on , a c qu i r e a n y
position or have any commercial or other
interest that is incompatible with his office,
fun ction a nd du ty or th e discha rge th ereof;
(c) use public property or s ervices for activities
not r elat ed t o his official work;
(d ) di rec t ly o r ind i rec t ly use h i s o f f ice fo r
private gain.
(3) No person to whom t his Pa rt applies shall be
a party to or shall undertake any project or activity
involving the use of public funds in disregard of the
Financial Orders or other Regulations applicable to
such funds.
Application of Part IV
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25. A person to whom this Part applies shall not use
information that is gained in the execution of his officeand which is not avai lable to the general publ ic to
fur th er or seek to fur th er his private interests.
26. A person to whom this Part applies shall not use
his off ice to seek to inf luence a decis ion made by
a n ot h e r p e r s on o r p u b l ic bod y t o fu r t h e r h i s own
private interests.
27. (1) A person to whom this Part applies shall not
a c c e p t a f e e , g i f t o r p e r s o n a l b e n e f i t , e x c e p t
compensat ion author ised by law, that i s connecteddirectly or indirectly with t he perform an ce of his or h e r
du t ies of office.
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a gift or
personal benefit that is received as an incident of the
protocol or social obligations that normally accompany
the respons ibilities of office.
(3) Where however a gift or personal benefit
referred to in subsect ion (2) exceeds two thousand
dol la r s in va lue o r where the to ta l va lue rece ived
directly or indirectly from one source in any twelve-month period exceeds two thousand dollars, a person in
public life shall file with his declaration, a statement
indicat ing the nature of the fee , g i f t or benef i t , i t s
sour ce an d th e circum sta nces un der wh ich it was given
or accepted.
28. Matt ers of a confidential n at ur e in t he possession
of persons to whom this Part applies, shall be kept
conf ident ia l unless the performance of duty or the
needs of justice strictly require otherwise, and shall
remain confidential even after separation from service.
29. (1) For the purposes of this Act, a conflict of
interest is deemed to arise if a person in public life or
an y person exercising a public fun ction wer e to ma ke or
Confidentially
Conflict of inter ests
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participate in the making of a decision in the execution
of h is off ice and a t the same t ime knows or oughtreasonably to have known, that in the making of the
decis ion, there is an oppor tuni ty e i ther d i rect ly or
indirectly to further his private interests or that of a
mem ber of his fam ily or of an y oth er per son.
(2) Where there is a possible or perceived conflict
of interest, a person to whom this Part applies, shall
d isc lose his in teres t in accordance with prescr ibed
procedures and disqualify himself from any decision-
making process.
30. (1) A person holding off ice under the Publ ic
Service, Judicial and Legal Service, Police Service,
Teaching Ser vice or St a t ut ory Aut hor i t ies Service
Commission, shall upon his appointment, and from
t i m e t o t i m e a s m a y b e r e q u i r e d , de cl a r e t o t h e
a p p r op r i a t e C om m i s s ion i n s u c h f or m a s m a y b e
prescribed
(a) a l l b u s i n e s s , c o m m e r c i a l a n d f i n a n c i a l
i n t e r e s t s a n d a c t i v it i e s i n w h i ch h e i s
engaged; an d
(b) all personal property, assets and liabilitiesi n r e s p e c t o f h i m s e l f , h i s s p o u s e a n d
dependent children,
provided that all information so given shall be treated
as confidentia l.
31. (1) The Commission shall report any breach of
t h i s P a r t t o t h e a p p r o p r i a t e Ho u s e of P a r l ia m e n t ,
Service Commission, Board, or other Authority and to
the Director of Public Prosecutions setting out such
details and par ticular s as it thinks fit.
(2) The appropriate House of Parliament, Service
Commission, Board or other Authority may take such
d i s ci p li n a r y a ct i on i n r e l a t i on t o a r e p or t m a d e
pursuant to subsection (1) as it thinks appropriate in
an y particular case.
Commission to report
breach of this Pa rt
Disclosur e to Ser vice
Commission
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PART V
POWER OF INVESTIGATION
32. (1) A member of the public who wishes to allegeor m ake a complaint th at a person in pu blic life or a nyperson exercising a public fun ction
(a) is in cont ra vention of th is Act;
(b) in relation to the Register of Interests, hasa conflict of int erest ; or
(c) is committing or has committed an offenceunder the Prevention of Corruption Act,
ma y do so in wr iting t o th e Comm ission.
(2) Any person who knowingly an d mischevouslym a k e s o r c a u s e s t o b e m a d e a f a l s e r e p o r t t o t h eCommission or misleads the Commission by givingfalse informat ion or by making fa lse s ta tements oraccusations shall be guilty of an offence and liable onconviction to a fine of two hundred and fifty thousanddollars and a term of imprisonment not exceeding fiveyears.
33. The Commission
(a) ma y on it s own initia tive; or(b) shall upon the complaint of any member of
th e public,consider and enquire into any alleged breaches of theAct or a ny a llegat ions of corr upt or dish onest condu ct.
34. (1) In carr ying out its function u nder section 33,th e Commission ma y
(a) a u t h o r i s e a n i n v e s t i g a t i n g o f f i c e r t oconduc t an enqu i ry in to any a l l eged o rsu spected offence;
(b) require any person, in writing, to produce,within a specified time, all books, records,a c c o u n t s , r e p o r t s , d a t a , s t o r e delectronically or otherwise, or any otherdocuments relating to the functions of anypublic or privat e body;
Complaints
Power of Commission
to investigate
Special powers of
investigation
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(c) require any person, within a specified time,
to provide any inform at ion or to answer an yquestion which the Commission considers
necessary in connection with any enquiry
or invest igation which th e Comm ission is
empowered to condu ct u nder th is Act;
(d ) r e q u i r e t h a t a n y f a c t s , m a t t e r s o r
documents re la t ing to the a l legat ions or
breach, be verified or otherwise ascertained
by oral examination of the person making
th e complaint ;
(e) cause any wi tness to be summoned andexam ined upon oat h.
(2) W h e r e , i n t h e cou r s e of a n y e n q u i r y t h e
Commission is satisfied that there is a need to further
e x p ed i t e i t s i n v e s t i ga t i on s , i t m a y e x er c i s e t h e
following powers:
(a) require any person to furnish a statement
in writing
(i) e n u m e r a t i n g a l l m ov a b l e or
immovable property belonging toor possessed by him in Trinidad
and Tobago or elsewhere, or held
in tr ust for him, an d specifying th e
date on which each such property
was acquired and the considera-
tion paid t herefore, an d explaining
whether it was acquired by way of
p u r c h a s e , g i f t , i n h e r i t a n c e o r
otherwise;
(ii) spec i fy ing an y monies or o th e rproperty acquired in Trinidad and
Tobago or elsewhere or sent out of
Trinidad and Tobago by him or on
h i s b e h a l f d u r i n g a s p e c i f i e d
period;
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(b) r e q u i r e a n y p e r s o n t o f u r n i s h ,
notwithsta nding t he pr ovisions of any otherwritten law to the contrary, all information
in his possession relating to the affairs of
an y suspected person being invest igated
and to produce or furnish any document or
true copy of any document relating to the
person under investigation and which is in
the possession or under the control of the
person r equired to fur nish t he inform at ion;
(c) r e q u i r e t h e m a n a g e r o f a n y b a n k , o r
f i n a n c i a l i n s t i t u t i o n , i n a d d i t i o n t of u r n i s h i n g i n f o r m a t i o n s p e c i f i e d i n
paragraph (b), to furnish any information
or certified copies, of the accounts or the
s t a t e m e n t o f a c c o u n t s a t t h e b a n k o r
financial insti tution of any person being
investigated.
(3) A person wh o fails or refuses t o disclose an y
such information or to produce any such documents,
c om m i t s a n of fe n c e a n d i s l i a b l e t o a f i n e o f on e
hundred and fifty thousand dollars and imprisonment
for a term of three years.
(4) An y p e r s on wh o k n owi n g l y m i s l e a d s t h e
C o m m i s s i o n , o r a n i n v e s t i g a t i n g o f f i c e r o f t h e
Commission, by giving false information, commits an
offence and is l iable on conviction to a f ine of two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars and imprisonment
for a ter m of five year s.
(5) Where after th e condu ct of an investigat ion,
the Commission is satisfied that there are reasonable
g r o u n d s f or s u s p e ct i n g t h a t a n o ffe n c e h a s b e e n
committed, i t shall make a report to the Director of
Public Prosecutions who may take such action as he
thinks appropriate.
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35. T h e r e c o r d s o f t h e C o m m i s s i o n a n d a n y
information revealed by a witness or by the productionof documents, shall not be disclosed, other than to such
e x t e n t a s m a y b e n e c e s s a r y f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f
proceedings in a ny cour t relating t o a cha rge un der t his
Act, the Prevention of Corruption Act or any other
writt en law.
36. (1) A person in public life or a person exercising a
public function may, by application in writing, request
t h e C o m m i s s i o n t o g i v e a n o p i n i o n a n d m a k e
recommendations on any matter respecting his own
obligat ions u nder th is Act.
(2) The Commission may make such enquiries as
it considers appropriate and provide th e person making
t h e a p p l i c a t i o n w i t h a w r i t t e n o p i n i o n a n d
recommendations.
(3) The opinion and recommendat ions of the
Comm ission sha ll be privileged inform at ion which ma y
be released only with the consent of th e person m aking
th e a pplicat ion.
37. T h e C o m m i s s i o n m a y o n i t s o w n i n i t i a t i v e
con s i d e r a n y m a t t e r w i t h r e s p e ct t o t h e d u t y o r
obl igat ion of a person under th is Act , where in i t s
opinion it is in t he pu blic int erest to do so.
38. No report concluding th at a per son t o whom th is
Act applies has failed without reasonable justification
to fulfill a duty or obligation under this Act shall be
made until reasonable notice has been given to such
person of the alleged failure and the person has been
allowed full opportunity to be heard either in person orby couns el.
39. No member of the Commission shall be liable to
any action or suit for any matter or thing done by him
un der th is Act.
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Pr otection of
information
Request for opinion
Commission to act in
public interest
Notice of adverse
report
Exemption from
liability
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40. The Commission may for specific projects or
investigations enter into contracts for the services ofpersons having technical or specified knowledge of anyma tt er r elating to the work of th e Commission.
41. (1 ) Th e C o m m i s s i on m a y m a k e R e g u l a t i on sprescribing
(a) t h e m a n n e r i n wh i c h e n q u i r i e s m a y b ecar ried out an d an y matt ers incident al to orconsequent ial upon su ch enquiries;
(b) the standard or criteria for the initiation ofsuch enquires;
(c) the manner in which information receivedfr o m t h e p u b l ic wou l d b e a s s e s s e d a n dverified;
(d ) the form of declaration to be submitted anda n y a d d i t i on a l for m s w h i ch h a v e b e enprescribed or which ma y become n ecessar y;
(e) the period within which any information ord o c u m e n t r e q u i r e d b y t h e C o m m i s s i o nshould be fur nish ed or pr oduced;
(f) th e fees tha t a re payable by members of th epublic in respect of a certified copy of a
p u b l ic d ecl a r a t i on s t a t e m e n t a n d t h emanner in which such statements may bemade available;
(g) any matter or thing in respect of which itmay be necessary to make Regulations forcar rying t his Act int o effect.
(2) Regulations made under subsection (1) shallbe subject to the affirmative resolution of Parliament.
42. F o r t h e p u r p o s e o f t h e I n c o m e T a x Ac t , a l loutgoing expenses reasonably incurred in the year of
income by a person in public life in conn ection with th epreparation of a statutory declaration required to befurnished by him for the purposes of th is Act , aredeemed to be incurred by him wholly, exclusively andnecessar ily in t he pr oduction of his income for t ha t yearof income.
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Regulations
Income Tax Act
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43. The Integrity in Public Life Act, 1987 is hereby
repealed.
44. Wh e r e a n y t h i n g h a s b e e n c o m m e n c e d b y o r
under the authority of the Integrity Commission under
the Integrity in Public Life Act, 1987, repealed by this
Act, such thing may be carried out and completed by or
un der t he au th ority of th e Int egrity Commission.
SCHEDULE
(Section 2)
P E RS ON S I N P UBLIC LIF E
l . Members of the House of Representat ives
2 . Ministe r s of Government
3 . Pa r liam en t a r y Secr et a r ie s
4. Members of the Tobago House of Assembly
5. Members of Municipal it ies
6. Members of Local Government Authorit ies
7. M e m be r s of t h e B oa r d s of S t a t u t o r y B od i es a n d S t a t e
Enterprises as prescribed in accordance with section 138(2)
of th e Constitut ion.
Pa ssed in th e Sena te t his 3rd da y of October, 2000.
N. COX
Clerk of the Senate
IT IS H ERE BY CE RTIF IE D that this Act is one the Bill for
which has been passed in the Senate and at the final
vote thereon in the Senate has been supported by the
votes of not less than three-fifths of all the members ofth e Senat e tha t is to say by th e votes of 25 Senators.
N. COX
Clerk of the Senate
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No. 8 of 1987
Transitional
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Passed in the House of Representatives this 6th day
of October, 2000.
D. DOLLY
Acting Clerk of the House
IT IS H ERE BY CE RTIF IE D that this Act is one the Bill for
which h as been pa ssed in th e House of Representa tives
and at the f inal vote thereon in the House has been
supported by the votes of not less than three-fifths of
al l the members of the House, that is to say by the
votes of 28 members of the H ouse.
D. DOLLY
Acting Clerk of the House
1110 No. 83 Integrity in Public Life 2000
PR IN TE D B Y T H E GOVERNMENT P RINTER, P ORT -OF -SPAINRE PUBL IC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO2000