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Edward Gabbidon last Friday resigned as chairman of HEART/NSTA Trust, insisting that he had acted with integrity during his tenure of the State-run entity and that his company had been doing business with government across administrations for more than 10 years.In his December 17 resignation letter to Prime Minister Andrew Holness, Gabbidon said a report submitted to Parliament's Public Administration and Appropriations Committee had suggested that he did not declare interest in the company with which he is associated.He said the facts are that the company, Sycon, of which he is the chief executive officer, has been doing business with government across administrations and specifically with HEART/NSTA Trust for more than a decade on an ongoing basis."On accepting appointment to the board of HEART/NSTA Trust in 2018, out of a desire to serve my country, I fulfilled the requirement to declare affiliation and interest," Gabbidon said, adding that he had attached a copy of his declaration for the prime minister's information.Public spotlight was turned onto Sycon's multimillion-dollar contracts with HEART/NSTA earlier this year, and there were reports that the entity's procurement committee had abstained from approving a $2-million contract to the company because of a "clear conflict of interest".However HEART/NSTA said Gabbidon never interfered in the awarding of contracts to his company.In his resignation letter, Gabbidon said, "The value of the procurements involved were below the threshold which would require board approval. Therefore, I would not have been called upon to make any decisions regarding contracting with the company."He also said he was not a member of the procurement subcommittee of the board and would not have participated in any decision regarding procurement at that level.Gabbidon said that Sycon is a 27-year-old industry leader in technology, and in many instances, the company provides products and services for vendors that require specialised and specific certification and training to implement."The specific procurement around which a query was raised was aborted and not issued," Gabbidon said, adding that "as chairman, when the query was made, I recused myself to allow the transparent examination of the issue."He also said that all procurement guidelines had been adhered to by HEART/NSTA."I fully understand, respect and indeed support the need for robust political debates on these matters. However, oftentimes the truth is a casualty, and facts are treated as incidental to promote a narrative. This is clear from the situation regarding my declaration," Gabbidon said.He said his decision to give public service was never to seek personal benefit, public praise, or political attention. "My motivation to serve was to give back to my country and to create opportunities for young persons to get access to training and character development."Gabbidon said he is grateful for the opportunity to have led the HEART/NSTA Trust successfully through the largest public sector merger in Jamaica's history, adding that the board is now on the next phase of settling the leadership and management of the entity, and he was satisfied it is making progress in this regard."Looking at the bigger picture, and not wanting to become a distraction from the important work that the board is undertaking at HEART/NSTA Trust and having regard to certain changes in my personal circumstances, as explained to you, I now advise that I will not be available as of this date to continue serving the board of the HEART/NSTA Trust," he told Holness.