Education Minister Fayval Williams has said details of the settlement agreement between the Jamaica College Board and former principal Ruel Reid will be made public.

However, Mrs Williams said she is unable to give those details at this time, including the amount paid to Mr. Reid, as she has not seen the document.

 

Mrs Williams insisted that the one-off payment was the best agreement under the circumstances. 

 

"Jamaica College is a bursar-paid school since the government pays for the teachers it hires and gives grants for other situations, and so it is a payment that, you know, is part of the government’s funding to JC," she explained. 

 

Questioned about whether she meant the entire settlement to Mr. Reid was funded solely by the government, the Education Minister pulled back.

 

"No, I'm not saying that.... The details of [the agreement] I do not have just yet. But I just want you to know that this situation, the way it ended, is in the best interest of Jamaica College going forward," she said. 

 

Mrs Williams maintained that the government is transparent and as such the details of the settlement would eventually be released. 

 

"I'm sure if it's not made public in the time frame in which the media wants it to, the media knows how to get the information, but there's nothing to hide," she suggested. 

 

The Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal, National Integrity Action, as well as human rights advocate and blogger Susan Goffe are pushing for details of the settlement to be made public.

 

Jamaica College has rejected reports about a multi-million dollar settlement with Mr. Reid, but has given no information on the terms of the separation.

 

 

In the wake of the issue involving Ruel Reid, Education Minister Fayval Williams said the process has started to repeal the Education Act.

 

Mrs Williams said the just-concluded matter highlights the need for urgency in bringing amendments to the legislation. 

 

"In fact, we're looking at a repeal and replace of it. We're pulling together all the consultations, all the recommendations, all the drafts that would have been done over the decades to see how best we can pull it together into a coherent document to take through all of its stages and to get to Parliament with it," she stated.