By Stephen Cummings
Caribbean Net NewsTrinidad and Tobago Correspondent
Email: stephen@caribbeannetnews.com

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad: Trinidad and Tobago's President George Maxwell Richards was warm in his encouragement of the local Trinidad and Tobago Transparency Institute (TTTI) at the conclusion of a courtesy call to his office made this week.

Trinidad and Tobago's President George Maxwell Richards. AFP PHOTO

The delegation was make up of directors comprising Transparency Institute Chairman, Victor Hart and Secretary, Boyd Reid.

President Richards heard from the team as the local chapter of Transparency International (TI), the global civil society organization leading the fight against corruption.

The President sought some clarification of the nature and purpose of TI's Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) and went on to discuss with his guests the Institute's Strategic Framework.

Of particular interest were Trinidad and Tobago Transparency's plans to encourage Government to complete the implementation of its new Public Sector Procurement Regime as proposed in the White Paper of August 2005.

Also discussed were the initiatives that the Institute proposes to take to raise public awareness of the evils of corruption, help promote the effectiveness of the Integrity Commission as an anti–corruption agency for the public sector.

This also means the encouragement of the adoption of anti–bribery codes in the private sector and promote the regulation of political party financing.