Christian business professionals have cautioned kingdom entrepreneurs against engaging in corruption to avoid government bureaucracy, although the temptation to pay to get ahead confronts Jamaicans daily.
Although nearly 80 percent of the country claims to be Christian, Jamaica is regarded as one of the most corrupt countries in the region, according to the Transparency International’s 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). The CPI is the most widely used global corruption ranking in the world, and measures how corrupt each country’s public sector is perceived to be, according to experts and business people.
Darren Brown, a finance columnist and a financial accounting superintendent, reminds Christians that they have to be the light in a very dark world.
“Jamaica is one of the most corrupt places from a bureaucratic standpoint, and as a Christian navigating those walls of “powers” that you have to go through, you have to have a backbone and have to say God, ‘take me through this,’” lamented Brown.
“The bureaucratic process costs you. It costs you on one level [if you are honest], and on the other hand, it will not cost you that much if you play the game. So you have to decide in your mind, what you are going to do? Are you going to stand on integrity, or are you going to be a part of the established order that they set out?” he asked.
Brown, a University of Leicester graduate who dabbles in real estate, has been confronted with corrupt practices; however, he remains a testimony to the fact that God will guide the righteous to not yield to temptation.
“From a business standpoint, we have to be determined to say that we are going to make a difference and watch God do great things in our midst,” he admonished.
Sales manager at Marathon Insurance Brokers, Joseth Brown, said she has been called “difficult”, because of her decision to maintain Godly principles. On one occasion, a Christian lady, who gave scant regard to her constant advice to have her car insured, met in an accident and wanted the sales manager to give her a cover note that pre-dated the accident.
“I can’t backdate a cover note; that is illegal,” the sales manager, who is also very active in Christian ministry noted.
“I realise that the older I get, is the more mature I get, and the longer I walk with God is the more determined I am to want what is right,” she said.
Co-owner and director of Charis Cafe and Events Management Services Limited, Peta Gay Rowe, pointed to the fact that when good people do nothing, evil prevails.
“When good people do nothing, what is unrighteous seems like the right thing to do, and the Word of God also declares that in the last days, good will seem bad and bad will seem good,” said Rowe, who believes righteous people should reinforce Godly values in the different sectors of society.
“You are first a Christian, and then you are a professional, and your Christian, biblical values [should] influence your professional walk, your professional conduct, your professional frame of mind, and I do believe that with all that is happening, we can see that the wheels might be turning a little bit slowly, but it will turn for the better,” said Rowe, who feels the level of corruption in Jamaica would have been worse if it were not for Christians standing for righteousness in business places.
While there are those Christians who are standing up for righteousness, chief executive office of Nuefville Management and Communication, Cheryl Nuefville, lamented that some Christians are among those encouraging corrupt practices. This comes in many forms, to include buying a driver’s licence and not following the proper protocols to get a fitness done for a vehicle.
“I believe that because we are the salt of the earth and because we are that light that the Lord has placed here, we ought to be up close and personal in every aspect of business in this country; and while we are doing our business, we need to make sure that our morals and our ethics and everything is up to scratch as God has ordained it; so people must look and see the difference in all of us,” she said.
Owner of Dayelight Publishers Limited, Crystal Daye, said it is obvious that Christians are a part of the challenge of stomping out corruption.
“So many people consider Christianity as a religion and not necessarily a lifestyle, meaning, you do the religious practices, but is the character aligned with who God has called us to be? I think more that ever, us as business owners, we have to be coming out and getting into not just the business sector, but politics, law and all of these things,” said said, explaining that this will enable righteousness to prevail.
Natalee Bailey-Harrison, a branch manager at the CIBC First Caribbean Bank, noted that at times, business owners become susceptible to the corruption because of the focus on success and becoming more profitable, especially when they consider those who are doing very well. This is a form of temptation.
“We will come upon challenges; there will be corruption around us in terms of in the business space; there will be fraud and different things that we will have to deal with on a daily basis, but this is an opportunity for us as Christians and persons in the business sector who call upon the name of Jesus, to differentiate yourself,” she said.