Golding says post-Melissa for Hanover shockingly bad

WESTERN BUREAU:

Amid the complaints of residents, Opposition Leader Mark Golding has given the Government a failing grade for its response to the impact of Hurricane Melissa in Hanover.

“I think the Government’s response to this disaster called Melissa is shockingly bad. It is really atrocious,” said Golding, while addressing a recent town hall meeting at the Hopewell Sports Complex in Hanover.

During the meeting, several persons who were affected by the Category 5 hurricane, which struck the island last October, complained about the lack of assistance from government programmes despite suffering major losses.

Assessing the state response, Golding said that immediately after the hurricane, when the eyes of the world were on Jamaica, “things were happening to some extent”, but after Christmas, going into the new year, things changed as many felt abandoned.

“The Government has had no cohesive, proper process for getting Jamaica back on its feet, especially western Jamaica, including Hanover,” he said, describing the initiatives implemented as haphazard.

Speaking specifically about the Government’s ROOFS (Restoration of Owner or Occupant Family Shelters) programme, a multimillion-dollar assistance initiative, Golding said that several persons who suffered losses and submitted their names have not been assessed to date and have not received any benefit.

Under the ROOFS programme, the Government announced that it was earmarking $10 billion for post-Melissa housing recovery, saying that the programme would be managed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security. The assistance was to be given in three categories: minor damage, $75,000; major damage, up to $200,000; and severe damage, up to $500,000.

Since the hurricane, there have been many sad stories coming out of Hanover by persons who claimed they had done what they had been asked to do in terms of registration, but the process has not moved on past that stage.

Golding pointed out that several names were also submitted for persons to receive benefits under a special programme for tourism workers, but most of them have also not received any benefits.

“There was also nothing for the business community, especially small businesses that have been damaged,” he said.

He also argued that the Government’s response to the Melissa disaster is the reason for the present negative economic outlook the country is seeing.

“How can you expect anything different when the Government sees a disaster and does not respond in a comprehensive way to get people back on their feet?” he asked, noting that the country needs to see the impact of the US$6 .7 billion in international donations that came to Jamaica to assist with reconstruction efforts.

“Jamaica needs reconstruction now. It needed it yesterday and the day before, and we are not seeing anything being done,” he said, noting that the formation of the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA), which was originally supposed to deal with hurricane reconstruction post-Melissa, is now just a way that the Government intends to use to circumvent and get around bureaucratic hurdles.

“In the meantime, 10 months after the hurricane, NaRRA is not even functional,” said Golding, saying that many people who suffered from the hurricane’s passing are still suffering.

editorial@gleanerjm.com