KINGSTON, Jamaica — Government Senator and Parliamentary Secretary in the Information Ministry, Marlon Morgan, says a real-time audit by the Auditor General’s Department shows the Government has moved to spend more than $11 billion on 420 Hurricane Melissa relief and recovery contracts currently underway, while describing the audit as an important tool for information and accountability.

Morgan argued that the $11.3 billion being spent on relief and recovery initiatives far outweighs the $1.4 billion in donations identified in the Auditor General’s Report as unspent.

“What is instructive is that the $1.4 billion in donations cited in the Auditor General’s Report as being unspent so far is exponentially outstripped by the massive $11.3 billion that is actually being spent on various relief and recovery initiatives. There can be no denying that in spite of bureaucracy-related red tape which delays project implementation and the expenditure of available funds, the Government has utilised practical and situationally appropriate mechanisms to deliver timely and effective relief for citizens affected by Hurricane Melissa, while ensuring value for money,” he commented.

Morgan further stated “The Auditor General’s Report is indicative of the Government’s responsiveness and massive body of work in treating with the passage of Hurricane Melissa, in that it references the $11.3 billion being expended in relation to some 420 relief and recovery-related contracts that are currently underway.”

He also described the auditor general’s Hurricane Melissa Relief Initiative Audit, which found that less than two per cent of the $1.44 billion in donations has been spent by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), as timely.

Morgan said, “It is a timely and compelling justification of the urgent need for NaRRA. Prime Minister [Andrew] Holness and his Cabinet deserve full commendation for the foresight and pragmatism reflected in the framing of NaRRA to lead Jamaica’s post-Hurricane Melissa reconstruction and resilience building”.

“The Jamaican people should note that the report does not contain any scandalous or damning finding of loss and/or corruption, and in many respects, reaffirms the bureaucracy-related challenges that many Jamaicans are already aware of, and understandably so, have grown impatient with. The public is fully aware that our country’s growth and development are being inhibited, in part, by our stark implementation challenges. What the Auditor General Report underscores is that it cannot be business as usual. It affirms that NaRRA will go a far way in helping Jamaica efficiently and effectively utilise available funds in improving the quality of life of the Jamaican people,” he further commented.

Morgan added, “From a public education standpoint, the recently concluded NaRRA debate in both Houses of Parliament gave the Jamaican people an opportunity to better appreciate the extent to which public bureaucracy is stifling growth, especially where the procurement rules are concerned”.

He said the report reinforces the Government’s position during the NaRRA debate.

“As a Government, we did our research and presented data making the case that there is a better way forward in pursuit of reconstruction and resilience building — a 21st-century, fit-for-purpose way that will have positive impact and deliver transformational results in a timely fashion, while ensuring transparency, probity and accountability. I wish to emphasise the fact that the Report in question is the product of a real-time audit, which is a snapshot in time, and as such, it should be appreciated that post-Hurricane Melissa relief and recovery activities are ongoing; they are not at an end.”