KINGSTON, Jamaica — Cabinet Minister Matthew Samuda has thrown his support behind the proposed National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA) Bill, pushing back against Opposition criticism that he has labelled as “baseless” and “contradictory”.

Opposition members have argued that the legislation could allow for massive expenditure without adequate oversight.

Government Member of Parliament for St James West Central, Marlene Malahoo Forte, has also expressed concerns about accountability and the breadth of authority granted under the Bill. She charged that the Bill will require significant reworking if it is to effectively accomplish its mandate.

READ: Silence from JLP as MP breaks ranks over NaRRA Bill

However, Minister Samuda, who serves as Member of Parliament for St Ann North East and holds responsibility for climate change and water, rejected the Opposition’s claims, insisting they are without merit.

According to Samuda, the authority will be subject to a raft of oversight mechanisms including scrutiny from the Parliament, the Auditor General and internal auditing processes.

Samuda argued that establishing NaRRA is crucial to advancing the country’s recovery and long-term development goals. He also noted that the Bill supports the Government’s broader push to strengthen resilience in both water management and climate change adaptation.

In a statement issued Friday, the minister detailed several accountability measures that would govern the operations of the authority, including:

— The jurisdiction of the duly constituted constitutional auditing authority, the Auditor General, which will be able to, at any time, conduct a review of NaRRA’s activities;

— NaRRA’s activities, including expenditure, are subject to review by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament, along with the Infrastructure Committee and the Public Appropriations and Administration Committee (PAAC) given that it will be a public body. The committee may from time to time review the activities and public expenditure of NaRRA;

— NaRRA is mandated to keep proper accounts in keeping with the standards of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Jamaica and is to submit annual financial reports to the minister who is duty-bound to cause the annual financial report and the findings of an internal auditor to be tabled in Parliament;

— NaRRA is subject to yearly internal reviews and audits to be conducted by a certified auditor who is to be a registered public accountant further to Section 2 of the Public Accountancy Act;

— NaRRA is mandated to submit to the minister a corporate plan with estimates of revenue and expenditure;

— NaRRA is subject to the directives of the Cabinet concerning reconstruction and resilience projects to be pursued;

— The NaRRA Act shall be reviewed by a committee of both Houses of Parliament appointed for that purpose with the review taking place no later than five years after the body comes into operation;

— NaRRA is duty bound to keep a register of resilience and reconstruction projects with relevant details. The register is to be gazetted and open for review by any member of the public; and

— Apart from the Auditor General and the designated internal auditor, NaRRA will be audited by the Internal Audit Department of the Office of the Cabinet. The Internal Audit Department of the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service appoints an oversight Audit Committee for each ministry to review their internal audit reports, management responses and actions being proposed to address weaknesses and gaps that may be identified.