Paulwell demands accountability after islandwide power failure

Jamaica's energy spokesperson Phillip Paulwell is demanding clear answers from the government regarding a recent islandwide power failure that left citizens in darkness for over 14 hours. Paulwell specifically called on Prime Minister Andrew Holness to clarify the cause of the system failure and provide a definitive timeline for full power restoration.

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Jamaicans cannot be asked to simply endure darkness and move on.

Paulwell expressed frustration over what he described as vague promises and a lack of complete restoration, drawing parallels to a similar outage in August 2016. He questioned the accountability of the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), asking why the recommendations from a formal probe ordered after the 2016 incident had not prevented a recurrence.

"Jamaicans cannot be asked to simply endure darkness and move on," Paulwell stated, emphasizing that accountability is not optional. He urged the OUR to release a public report on actions taken since the 2016 probe and called for Jamaica Public Service (JPS) to provide a transparent account of the recent failure.

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The OUR must account for what was done with the 2016 recommendations. If they were implemented, why are we here again? If they were not, who is responsible for that failure of oversight?

The opposition spokesman also cast doubt on the initial suggestion that lightning was the sole cause, arguing it contradicts claims of building resilience. He highlighted the severe economic and social costs of such blackouts, affecting businesses, households, airports, and hospitals, and warned against a "cycle of failure, probe, silence, and repeat."

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This cannot become a cycle of failure, probe, silence, and repeat. Accountability is not optional. It is owed.