Auditor General Faults ODPEM Oversight of Hurricane Melissa Relief Donations
The Auditor General’s Department has rebuked the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) for the way it handled money donated to help people hit by Hurricane Melissa.
Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis reported that ODPEM had no formal contract with a private financial services firm on holding back 30 per cent of contributions to guard against chargebacks.
The examination showed that millions of Jamaican and US dollars remained frozen after the agreed 45-day window had passed. ODPEM also did not act promptly to demand payment or to gather the paperwork needed to back that up.
The findings drew further attention when auditors said that, as of April 2026, only $26 million of the $1.44 billion raised for Melissa relief had been disbursed, while debate over how aid was being shared continued in public.
Syndicated from ZIP FM · originally published .
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