The Universal Service Fund (USF) wishes to clarify the misunderstanding that has been circulating that is giving the impression that Dr. Hugh Cross, former Chief Executive Officer of the USF was fired from the entity as a part of a political cleansing.

The USF under this current board has never participated in such acts and condemns the very nature of such activity. It is therefore necessary to set the record straight.

The board of the fund ended the relationship with Dr. Cross after it was discovered that he had an unlawful contractual arrangement with the entity.

For clarity we attach a chronology of the events leading to the end of such relationship for your information.

Chronology of Events

1. January 31, 2016– General Elections were announced, to be held February 25, 2016
2. February 4, 2016– Ministry of Finance and Planning issued circular Re: Conduct of Directors of Boards of Public Bodies during Transition Periods. The circulated, among other things, advised Boards that no new appointment to executive position should be made until a new Board is appointed.
3. February 11, 2016– Meeting of the Board of Director of USF took place with Chairman Wellesley Blair and CEO Hugh Cross, in attendance. At the meeting, the February 4^th circular was presented to the Board Dr. Cross.
4. On February 25, 2016-the Jamaica Labour Party won the elections and was set to form the new administration
5. March 3, 2016– Andrew Holness sworn in as Prime Minister of Jamaica
6. March 7, 2016– New Cabinet sworn in at Jamaica House, with Dr. Andrew Wheatley being named as the new Minister of Science Energy and Technology. The USF fall directly under this Ministry.
7. April 1 2016 Cabinet of Jamaica approved the appointment of members to  the Board of the USF
8. April 7, 2016-, Dr. Cross signed a new contract of employment which was dated April 7, 2016. NB. Dr Cross existing contract had not expired.
9. April 8, 2016– Dr. Cross, at 8.20am emailed all senior managers, advising them that a new Board had been appointed. On the same day, Dr. Wellesley Blair signed the contract of employment of Dr. Cross. No previous Board minutes show that the Board ever discussed the renewal of Dr. Cross’ contract. Further, after advising the staff of the change of Directorship, Dr. Cross signed the Official Secret Act Declaration which forms part of his contract, on April 8, 2016.
10. At the time of signing, Dr. Blair was no longer the chairman of the Board, thus, he did not have the authority to sign a contract of employment for anyone on behalf of the USF.
11. On July 29, 2016– two Directors requested a special meeting of the Board to discuss matters of importance.
12. August 5, 2016– the new Board convened a meeting and discussed the ‘contract’ of Dr. Cross. At that meeting, the Board took the decision to separate from of Dr. Cross.

Chairman of the Universal Service Fund, Robert Lawrence, has sought to clarify claims of nepotism and cronyism at the state-run Technology Agency, reiterating that the USF adheres to a transparent process in the filling of all permanent positions.

Claims of a biased employment process have been made in the public domain after the USF declared that the daughter of CEO Ms Suzette Buchanan temporarily assisted the Agency with its social media presence.

In clarifying, Mr Lawrence said the Agency’s HR policy does not prohibit the hiring of relatives of employees, but rather states that in the hiring of permanent employees, ‘sound business judgement must be made’.

He added that while the policy is silent on temporary engagements, having the daughter of the CEO engaged to provide any type of service to the organization could be construed as ‘not the best exercise of judgement’.

Ms Buchanan was made aware of a possible issue with the engagement after her daughter discontinued the arrangement with the entity. Nevertheless, she advised the Board who appropriately addressed the matter.

“I have always operated with the utmost integrity and transparency. Now that we are clear on that policy, I will work alongside management to ensure there is no recurrence of such incidents within the organization.” She said

The USF has 17 permanent employees. The Agency does not have a dedicated staff member to manage its social media accounts. The USF has applied to the Ministry of Finance for the approval of additional permanent positions, to better enable the entity to meet its expanded mandate ushered in by the amended Telecommunications Act.

Among the proposed positions is that of a Communication Officer, with responsibility for the Agency’s social media presence, among other things.

 According to Buchanan “At the time the Agency did not have a strong social media presence. Her focus was on raising awareness of the entity to help extend its reach”

The USF’s CEO stated that her daughter initially provided her services at no cost, after which an arrangement was instituted.

“She was engaged for the short-term, performing entry-level tasks and was not on staff. As such, she received no benefits or allowances. In May, she advised in writing that she would no longer be able to provide her services, and as such, the arrangement was discontinued” Buchanan said

Chairman of the USF says with the strides the Agency has made under the current CEO and her proven track record of performance, dismissal would have been too drastic a penalty.

“As a Former Board Member and CEO of Caymanas Track, she had stewardship of over 400 employees and managed billions in annual revenue. That experience coupled with her business acumen and marketing skills made her a natural fit for the organization.” Lawrence said.

He added that Buchanan excelled during the interview process and continues to demonstrate astute leadership. “The position was advertised, and following a competitive interview process the best candidate was chosen by a panel and so far, the board is satisfied with her work.”