Morgan slams Swaby's 'hypocritical' criticism of the One Road Authority

Minister with responsibility for works, Robert Morgan has accused Mayor of Kingston Andrew Swaby of attempting to "pass the buck" in relation to road maintenance in his recent criticism of the One Road Authority (ORA).

Cabinet recently approved a policy framework for the ORA, which is mandated to regulate road performance and standards across the island. 

However, Swaby has criticised the initiative, arguing that it does not address the problem of inadequate funding for road maintenance.

Swaby last week also complained that local authorities “are simply not funded at the level that allows us to properly maintain roads under our care.”

Morgan today expressed disappointment at what he described as the contradictory and misleading statements made by Swaby.

Morgan pointed out that in May 2020, while serving as Minority Leader and a PNP Councillor at the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC), Swaby proposed a local solution to the funding challenges "he now claims are unsolvable".

Morgan said at that time, Swaby and fellow Councillor Dennis Gordon tabled a resolution calling on the KSAMC Council to authorise the Finance Committee to approve an increased annual allocation of $12 million per division. This was to be drawn from the existing Parochial Revenue Fund (PRF) subvention. 

“Mayor Swaby had the perfect opportunity to implement his own 2020 proposal. He was sworn in as Mayor and Chairman of the KSAMC on March 12, 2024, more than two years ago, and has held executive leadership of the Corporation ever since. Yet, under his watch, there has been no evidence of the increased divisional allocations he once championed, nor has he delivered the improved road conditions he promised Kingston and St. Andrew residents," Morgan said.

He continued, "Instead, he now chooses to shift blame to the Central Government and the newly proposed One Road Authority. This is a classic case of passing the buck."

Morgan explained that the One Road Authority is not a funding agency designed to solve local budgetary shortfalls. 

He said the ORA is an executive agency whose core mandate is to establish and enforce a single national standard for road works across the island; eliminate fragmentation and duplication between multiple agencies; regulate standards, quality assurance, and performance monitoring for all roads; and ensure every taxpayer dollar delivers safer, higher-quality roads through modernised governance.

"Mayor Swaby’s refusal to take ownership of the solutions he once proposed, combined with his apparent misunderstanding of the ORA’s role, does a disservice to the residents of Kingston and St. Andrew who continue to travel on substandard parochial roads," Morgan said.

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