The agriculture minister, Dr Christopher Tufton, appears to have now given thought to the issue and, sensibly, retreated from his initial it-is-not-my-responsibility stance over the apparent fleecing of Jamaica Cane Product Sales, (JCPS) more than $80 million in a deal to purchase fertiliser. For this is a matter in which the Government has legitimate interest, both as a practical business matter and from a policy perspective.

First, while JCPS is not owned by the Government and when it suits, its bosses declare it to be private, it does operate like a quasi-state organisation.

Owned by the sugar-cane farmers association and the island's sugar-manufacturing interests, JCPS is the marketing agent for the Govern-ment's Sugar Industry Authority, overseeing the sale of Jamaican preferentially supplied sugar to the European Union and the United States markets. Domestically, JCPS falls just short of being a monopoly marketer of locally produced sugar and molasses.

In any event, the Sugar Company of Jamaica is the major manufacturer in Jamaica and is a shareholder in JCPS, whose bosses have not been shy to pronounce in semi-official tones on policy matters to do with the sugar sectors.

High price of fertiliser

Indeed, JCPS was operating in an undeclared - and even self-assigned - quasi-official capacity when it undertook this bungled deal. The authorities, including Dr Tufton, had been complaining about the high price of fertiliser and the impact this was having on domestic agriculture. They all sought alternative and cheaper supplies of the commodity from that of the domestic producer.

The intent might have been good, but the execution was, to say the least, poor. And the major question the managers of the JCPS have to answer is what kind of due diligence was undertaken before entering this agreement and, assuming one was done, how it could have failed so badly.

No product arrived

Apparently, JCPS dealt with a firm of New York-based brokers, with suppliers in India, who were to deliver several thousand tonnes of fertiliser. Jamaica Cane Product Sales paid over more than US$1 million but no product arrived.

It seems that the firm of brokers was new and that this deal was their first in Jamaica. This appears to raise questions about what checks were done, and if any one of the recognised international agencies that conduct such commercial interrogations was employed to research either the broker or the supposed Indian manufacturer. It would be interesting to hear what information was given to the board of JCPS to endorse this purchase and to determine whether it exercised good fiduciary responsibility. People's judgement must be questioned.

Unfortunately, the balance sheet and profit and loss statement of JCPS is not readily available. We will probably be reminded that it is a private entity.

However, in the context of Jamaica, US$1.4 million is not chump change. Its loss would be felt by the company. Hopefully, this does not become a burden on taxpayers if JCPS finds itself unable to meet its obligations to sugar-cane farmers.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.