Roulstone appointed as new Ombudsman
(CNS): Sharon Roulstone is to be the new Ombudsman overseeing public complaints against the government and the police, whistle-blower protection, freedom of information requests and data protection. Governor Martyn Roper announced Roulstone’s appointment on social media Thursday, saying her “professional achievements, integrity and passion impressed the recruitment panel who unanimously agreed that she was well suited to take on this important role as leader of an oversight body and champion of good governance”.
“As governor, I am keen to see more Caymanians taking up the top positions in our jurisdiction,” Roper added, referring to the fact that Roulstone the first Caymanian to take up the position of Ombudsman.
The selection process for the post was overseen by a recruitment panel chaired by the governor. The other members were Gloria McField-Nixon, the chief officer of Portfolio of the Civil Service, and private sector members Patricia Estwick and David Ritch, who were nominated by the premier and the opposition leader.
Roulstone had taken up the post of deputy ombudsman in January 2018. However, shortly after that she was seconded to head up the National Human Resources Department, the forerunner to WORC.
When Roulstone’s secondment there ended in 2020, a dispute arose between her and the then ombudsman Sandy Hermiston about Roulstone’s return to that office. By that time Hermiston had recruited a former employee as a consultant to the post that Roulstone had originally been recruited for.
When Roulstone left WORC, the consultant was still in the job and was said to be working remotely from Canada. As a result, Roulstone was prevented from returning to her original position.
Hermiston was appointed to head the newly merged office in September 2017. She left Cayman for a new position in her native Canada at the beginning of this year and Jan Leibers, the deputy ombudsman who oversees freedom of information and data protection, has been acting ombudsman.
Roulstone, who takes up the post on 4 April, said the role of the ombudsman is integral to a democratic society.
“Fundamentally, it applies the rule of law to hold government accountable to the people it serves. Within our jurisdiction, we investigate complaints of maladministration, complaints against the police, data protection, whistleblower protections and freedom of information appeals,” she said.
“I look forward to leading this important work to ensure that the people of the Cayman Islands have access to impartial, procedurally fair and confidential investigations of their complaints. I am grateful to the governor and the panel for their confidence in appointing me to this post and I look forward to serving my country in this new capacity,” she added.
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Category: Government oversight, Jobs, Local News, Politics, Private Sector Oversight
So wait… the Ombudsman Office was asked to investigate WORC, in particular matters that were under Sharon’s control when she was at WORC and she then returned to the Ombudsman position to investigate herself? How did that go ?
See how screwed up the system is,bumped our daughter of the soil and exported her job to a Canadian living overseas in Canada.Sharon l hope you sued the Cayman govt.I pray that you remain a strong bold soldier and do not allow PACT bullies to influence or scare you to go against your good morals Remember Sharon you were appointed by the governor, and not any politician.So you owe them nothing.Do your job without nepotism, and without pride and prejudice. Do what you do best Sharon.Execute justice.Try to get justice for our people some how.
Q1 Why does it take 3 weeks to clear duty free goods through HM Customs?
Q2 For what purpose could they possibly require anyone’s birth certificate when they already have 2 govt issued IDs?
Overreach and incompetence, now at levels approaching maladministration which is a crime. But it is OK because our police and our ombudsman and our legal department and our elected government seemingly do not give a damn. It is destroying Cayman and the futures of the Caymanian people and yet there is no accountability or prospect of change.
Can I make a FOI request on how West Bay has the most useless bunch of politicians ever since Columbus!!
Begins with Jam, and ends with rock.
I think they can just cut short the role profile of any senior job on island now. Criteria – Caymanian, qualifications – Caymanian experience – Caymanian.
TRUTH
You kissed out the one about being trusted not to cause waves, or being owed a favour.
Well, this is Cayman, so, yeah that’s how this works.
For paper Caymanians too or just pure bloods? Asking for a friend
Installing failed political candidates in these type of oversight positions is not only wrong but wrought with integrity issues and problems But that has never stop or elite officials from advancing their corrupted agenda or behavior. How sad Cayman when we have political henchmen and women now installing like mind tyrants who’s unfair views and decisions effects us all
Congrats Sharon perfect candidate for this most important job. Being Caymanian and hearing people on this platform speaking badly about our people is tiring. No one is perfect, if we were, then we would all be saints. We all have shortcomings. Here is a person who understands, we need to talk to someone who is Caymanian that will understand where we coming from. Lets stand together like all the other foreigners do against us.
Speaking truth is not tearing down Caymanians, or anyone else for that matter. You can stand together with her, that is your choice but there are those of us who will never do so based on our own experience with the woman. This position needs someone who will not only understand but can be trusted with that understanding.
She lacks empathy and does not believe in diplomacy or the milk of human kindness. I will pray for the staff of that Office.
Caymankind right there…… nothing like some good old fashioned xenophobia
Yep glad for a Caymanian to be taking over “but” please no fancy systems like the failed WORC platform, we had enough a day already. Best wishes for total success.
I don’t know, Gary, but it had to be back in the dark ages or earlier.
Doubt she can be impartial given her many friends in high places.
This won’t end well.
Nope. It won’t.
Oh wow! A promotion for failing to recuse herself from maladministration investigations against WORC.
What maladministration investigations against WORC? There should have been many, and the criminal conduct abounds, but no one has done shit about it, despite clear and overwhelming evidence. Nor will they. We are literally doomed.
If you read the comment to which you replied you would understand that her refusing to recuse herself prevented a fair investigation. All about the protection of friends.
Then the Anti Corruption Commission, the Police, the Governors Office and the FCO should be kicking down doors!!!! WT Actual F?
So who do we call if the Ombudsman’s office is party to maladministration?
Ghostbusters??
You might as well call ghostbusters!
This woman was there, at the helm of WORC, and did nothing. She is definitely not the person who should have been appointed to this position.
Ombudsman office is a toothless tiger than can do NOTHING except make recommendations that are ultimately ignored. Lots of big wages being paid for little return.
“Big wages” that’s the clincher right there.
In my experience, under Hermiston, they were no more than enablers of maladministration and incompetence. Facilitators of those irretrievably harming Cayman. I hope and trust that Sharon will be different. Her country needs her to be.
She will not be different. Another enabler to protect friends.
To be fair, there is little practical difference in outcome between an expat who is ignored – are you listening Auditor General – and a Caymanian. Of course, if you don’t ring the bell in the first place, even better 😉
4:31 A new flashy job, just because she is Caymanian is right. Being a friend of certain people in high places does not hurt either.
Congratulations Sharon.
Congratulations, Ms. Roulstone. Job well done! Forge on.
“Job well done”? She’s just been appointed, hasn’t even started yet, so how can you say that?!
Past life, and getting the new position, is “job well done” in my book. YMMV.
Did we get rid of the remote working Canadian “consultant” hired by the Canadian Hermiston?
Why was Hermiston allowed to get away with employing a foreign national in a job that a Caymanian could and should have been doing? That would be a breach of various laws if the private sector did it. Is she immune? Why did we let the fox in the henhouse for so long? And people question why Caymanians are becoming mistrustful of expatriates, and government?
Remote working expats is much more common than you think. A Cayman salary goes a long way in Canada and the govt needs to regulate this practice, because it still keeps Caymanians from taking these positions.
And the Ombudsman what really really not supposed to participate in it. Was she? She came across as entitled. She saw nothing wrong with the immigration systems intended to protect Caymanians collapsing under assault from every direction. She contributed to so much harm. I am delighted that a Caymanian is now in charge. Someone who actually cares about the place.
In a few months you can reassess how much this newly appointed Caymanian cares.
Or not.
I’m given to understand the portfolio of the civil service uses a remote working expat in England.
The Civil Service has Caymanians working out of Hong Kong. Prove me wrong.
That is fantastic 10:38. We must give Caymanians opportunities to succeed.
As does POLA which has civil servants working remotely in Canada … and consultants working in Bodden Town and SMB …
I will give you another permutation: an expat who was here on a work permit reportedly claimed that she had a consultancy company in Canada and took on a job here on that basis outside of her work permit.
And by the way, it was a job that any qualified Caymanian (and there are many) in that field could have done.
Blow me down with a feather.
Masa, all dem kinda things going on.
That was a crime and an offense under multiple laws, and as usual, no one did anything.
Check out the real estate companies to find remote workers.
Franz. Please explain. We had to pay. #worldclassmyass.
8:58. You mean you don’t know that our DG does not take part in the recruitment of the Ombudsman. A hint should have been that the ombudsman oversees the performance of our world-class civil service.
Please don’t post until you have facts. Zzzzz
I have facts. Who paid the remote working Canadian “consultant?” Too many in the civil service are inept and incompetent. The failure of the Ombudsman to do anything effective about it for years does not cloak her office, or the civil service, with glory. Good luck to Sharon! Now can Franz please explain why the civil service paid a consultant to do work overseas for years while there was a qualified Caymanian here who was being apparently blocked from the role?
Any hotel that behaved that way would have a manager arrested by WORC enforcement. This crap of the civil service being exempt from all the laws the rest of us are expected to abide by has to stop.
Oversees the performance of our xxxxclass civil service? That is most definitely NOT what our last ombudsman did, is it? Had she, it might have some prospect of actually becoming world class.
5.11pm Hopefully but it took two years
Blimey. She has had a lot of jobs.
A LOT of jobs, yes! I wonder why she is unable to keep any.
From job to job
I wonder if she’ll be a watchdog or a sleepy kitten.
Hope her many local connections will not stand in the way of impartial execution of her duties.
Is this some kind of bad joke? Hope her performance proves better than her last appointment. God help the Cayman Islands.
So after the terrific job at Worc she gets a new flashy job? Just because she is caymanian? Wow
Elgin Ave privilege is real Bobo…
Yep! A terrific job at WORC that she was terrible at. Ever wonder why she was ever so quietly replaced there? Only in Cayman
Set up to fail is a likely scenario.
Congrats. Rolling stone.
Lol Rolling Stone! Great title!