Kingston, Jamaica – May 31, 2016: The Patriots notes with grave concern the extremely troubling allegations made against the Prime Minister as revealed on the 18 Degrees North television programme aired on TVJ on the evening of Monday May 30, 2016. We, therefore, call upon the Prime Minister to immediately end the obfuscation surrounding the properties owned and clarify under what circumstances contracts were awarded to companies connected to him while he was Minister of Education.
The Patriots, like all well thinking Jamaicans, feel that it has become necessary for the Prime Minister to:
1. Clarify whether procurement procedures were followed by the Ministry of Education during his tenure as Education Minister;
2. Detail the full extent of his relationship (if any) with Mr. Robert Garvin and/or Westcon Construction Ltd;
3. Indicate whether his relationship (if any) with Robert Garvin and/or Westcon Construction Ltd was disclosed and if so to whom and by what means; and
4. Indicate whether he benefited directly or indirectly from any payments or arrangements made pursuant to the contracts identified in the televised programme.
Further, the Patriots would also like to remind the Prime Minister of his commitment to release his financial records by the end of March. This was reportedly delayed due to the preparation of the budget. The budget is now complete and we request once again the immediate disclosure by Mr. Andrew Holness of all financial records relevant to the present allegations, in order to encourage confidence of the Jamaican people in the integrity of the Prime Minister and his office. The Patriots contend that aside from his commitment to the electorate, the recent allegations have made it absolutely imperative for the Prime Minister to make these revelations without any further delay.
These allegations have such far-reaching implications for governance, the group, in an effort to ensure the continued integrity and legitimacy of the Office of the Prime Minister to implement laws relating to tax compliance, is calling on both the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the Office of the Contractor General (OCG) to immediately launch investigations into these latest developments as a matter of utmost urgency.
We, are also calling on the PSOJ, the JCC, the JMA, the National Integrity Action (NIA), Jamaicans for Justice and indeed members of the Jamaica Labour Party to publicly state their views on what now appears to be a serious emerging issue of the credibility of the top leadership of the country with these allegations