Fear factor

In a blunt admission during Tuesday’s launch of Jamaica’s reconstruction watchdog, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness said the fear of parliamentary scrutiny that follows procurement decisions has become part of the reason public servants are reluctant to move quickly.

This is an issue the Jamaica Reconstruction and Resilience Oversight Committee (JAMRROC) is now expected to help confront through independent, real-time accountability.

Holness said the answer was not to remove scrutiny, but to make it possible for Government to comply with the rules while moving at the speed demanded by the country’s recovery.