Governor’s office confirms no racism at DPP’s office

(CMR) The Governor's Office has issued a statement regarding the investigation into allegations of racism and discrimination in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution. CMR reported earlier that numerous employees took the stand during a corruption trial over the past seven weeks and spoke of the “toxic environment” in which they worked in. The alleged toxicity began after Patrick Moran took the help in the prosecutor's office.

Despite the issue being pivotal to a defense case of Evita Dixon, who was exonerated by a jury of her peers today the Governor clarified that there is “no evidence to substantiate the complainant's perception of racial bias.”

The statement reads in full:

In response to a serious allegation of perceived racial discrimination in an appointment made by the former Director of Public Prosecutions Patrick Moran, I asked the Cayman Islands Government’s Internal Audit Service (IAS) to undertake a full and immediate investigation. The IAS has completed its work and concluded that there was no (no) evidence to substantiate the complainant’s perception of racial bias. I have accepted this finding. However, the IAS report made a number of performance management recommendations to strengthen the management of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, which I have also accepted.

The Civil Service has a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discrimination, bullying or harassment and remains committed to investigating all such allegations. Ensuring that all employees are treated fairly is at the core of our civil service values.

The Deputy Governor, and Head of the Civil Service, said, ‘it is unfortunate that these allegations appeared in the media before they were properly investigated. Any civil servant who has concerns about how they are being treated in the workplace is encouraged to raise their concerns with their line manager, Chief Officer, me, or the Governor. All concerns will be treated fairly and with the utmost seriousness, as they were in this case.