Agencies in Charge of Public Resources Must Meet the Highest Standard of Accountability – PM

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says any State agency in charge of administering public resources must meet the highest standard of accountability and responsiveness.

Mr. Holness, who was speaking at the inaugural Local Governance Conference at the Jewel Grande Resort and Spa in Rose Hall, St. James, on July 17, said the conference’s theme, ‘Strengthening Responsiveness and Accountability within the Local Governance Framework’, is in tandem with the tone that “this Government has consistently maintained” in requiring responsiveness and accountability at all levels of government.

He added that Local Government, of all the Ministries, has on the ground mechanisms that can make a huge difference in the lives of the citizenry and must operate at all times above board and with a high sense of responsibility.

“Prosperity can only be achieved if the Government creates an enabling environment and where the people are empowered. To this end, local government has a critical role to play in delivering service to the people,” he pointed out.

He said local government, being closest to the people, delivers critical services that “directly impact and determine the quality of life that we enjoy”.

The Prime Minister further noted that local government is “subject to the same national standards of accountability” and is expected to deliver the highest quality of service.

“Local government is not parochial government in the figurative sense. It is also not a lesser form of government, which would require a lesser form of responsiveness and accountability. Local government is about the delivery of service. Local government exists because [it is] able to deliver service to the citizens in a much quicker and efficient fashion than service delivery from central government,” Mr. Holness said.