THE 40 councillors in the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) have each been allocated $2.5 million under what its chairman Andrew Swaby has described as an employment generation programme.

During Tuesday’s meeting of the KSAMC Swaby, the Mayor of Kingston, outlined that each division was allocated $1.5 million by the corporation while the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development allocated $1 million to each division.

“I have given clear instructions to the city engineer’s department to ensure every project is carried out with full transparency, strict accountability and the highest quality for money. It is essential that resources entrusted to us are used efficiently and effectively, so the residents of Kingston and St Andrew will see real improvement in their communities,” Swaby told councillors.

“I urge all councillors to actively support these efforts, monitor the work, and engage with the team on the ground. We want to ensure that the employment generation programme strengthens public confidence by demonstrating our commitment to the cause and service to the people,” the mayor added.

While he was happy to announce the allocation to each division, Swaby expressed displeasure at what he described as the less than adequate subvention for salaries of employees of the KSAMC by central government over the last three years.

“This shortfall has placed even more pressure on our budget. The Government often boasts of public sector reclassification and the higher salaries that come with it but they are not sending the KSAMC the full funds needed to honour those very increases,” charged Swaby.

“I understand that this situation does not only apply to KSAMC but to other municipalities. This is unsustainable. The gap has left the corporation carrying the costs that should be covered by the central government and each year the shortfall is increased. It has forced us to pull resources from other obligations, including bills that cannot be paid, just to keep the system running.

“While we continue to meet our obligations, it has not been easy. Even with mounting pressures we have been tightening our cost control measures. This includes the amount we pay for extra hours earned, usually referred to as overtime. We cannot keep a system where productivity during regular hours is low but rises during overtime. This is not acceptable. We expect productive work all the time. This is about fairness to taxpayers who fund the coverage,” added Swaby.

He argued that the KSAMC has to be financially sustainable if it is going to serve the people of Kingston and St Andrew in the way they expect.