Calder calls for full implementation of accountability framework
Published:Monday | January 12, 2026 | 12:06 AM
Executive Director of the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP) Jeanette Calder is urging the Government to implement the promised accountability framework this year that was pledged by the administration in 2023.
She is also calling for improvement in constitutional accountability that had been promised by the Government from as far back as 2015.
“If these promises were to be delivered in 2026, Jamaicans would feel the difference in how decisions are made, how public resources are managed and a significant improvement in the quality of our lives,” Calder said.
She said that, during a Jamaica House press conference to address the increase in salaries to parliamentarians on May 22, 2023, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness made several commitments.
The JAMP boss noted that the prime minister committed to completing a code of ethics for members of parliament, institute financial penalties for unexcused absences from the House, and obtain written accountability reports highlighting achievements to be reviewed by a special committee of parliament.
The head of government, according to Calder, also signalled that Cabinet ministers would be required to provide the public (not just the prime minister) with policy, legal, administrative targets and indicators for each financial year. She said this was followed up by a statement in the House on June 20, 2023 that “the other side of the compensation reform is the implementation of the performance-based system and an accountability framework to be implemented in the next two years”.
Those two years have come and gone, she added.
IN AGREEMENT WITH PM
Calder said the country was not asking for anything new, noting she was in agreement with the prime minister and the emphasis he had placed on accountability.
“What Jamaicans need to and deserve to see in 2026 is the implementation of the accountability framework that was promised in 2023 and the improvement in constitutional accountability that has been promised from as far back as 2015,” she insisted.
Responding to questions about her expectations for 2026, the JAMP executive director argued that there are many reforms and improvements that Jamaica needs to pursue. She however reasoned that strengthening Parliament and improving accountability is the keystone.
“When Parliament works well, it creates the conditions for better policy, better spending, and better outcomes across every sector. Improving parliamentary accountability is not one reform among many, it is the reform that will enable others to succeed,” she added.