Remember Holness’ ‘goodness’

Declaring that Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness could have been serving elsewhere in the world, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Deputy Leader Desmond McKenzie is urging supporters to remember the “goodness” of the prime minister in managing the country when they vote.

While speaking to Labourites in St Andrew North Western at a constituency meeting on the weekend, McKenzie said the achievements of the JLP and the work of Holness cannot be challenged or discredited.

But, he said, some are actively seeking to question and undermine the work and success of the ruling party, which he described as the best since 1944.

“[He’s] a young man who could have gone elsewhere but decided that Jamaica is important. All of us here tonight, every single Labourite, those of you here at Sherlock, those of you watching and those listening wherever you are, you must remember the goodness of Andrew Holness and the Jamaica Labour Party since 2016,” said McKenzie in front of bell-ringing supporters.

He said the party can stand on its achievements without engaging in a back and forth with the opposition People’s National Party, whose argument he sought to rubbish about the JLP using state resources to pay for campaign advertisements.

McKenzie said that he – as a minister of local government – has a right to inform the population about the achievements of his ministry.

“It is my responsibility. PNP is not going to talk about it. And when we go out there to work, we don’t mix the politics with government work,” he said.

He said the PNP’s criticisms stem from the party’s inability to campaign on achievements and the lack of familiarity that comes with this.

“They don’t want us to tell the Jamaican people about the performance of the Government of Dr Andrew Holness,” the minister said.

In a statement earlier this month, the PNP alleged that the Holness-led administration was using government resources to fund what it described as “vulgar, self-serving political propaganda” disguised as public service announcements.

Opposition Spokesperson on Information Nekeisha Burchell argued that it is a blatant misuse of public funds by the JLP, pointing to a growing number of what she called campaign-style advertisements across media platforms that are being paid for by government ministries, including the Office of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of Local Government.

“This is not just vulgarity, it is corruption in plain sight,” Burchell said. “Public funds are being hijacked ... while Jamaicans are being starved of the essential services they’ve already paid for through their taxes.”

Burchell slammed the Government’s “reckless spending on political ads”, noting that thousands of public-sector workers remain unpaid for earned benefits, such as mileage, uniform allowances, and salary increments.

Further, she said the administration has failed to honour retroactive wage adjustments, even as the cost of living skyrockets.

“It is disgraceful that while public servants are being told there’s no money for their legitimate claims, the Government finds millions to plaster Andrew Holness across billboards and airwaves,” she said.

The PNP spokesperson also argued that there are ongoing crises affecting everyday Jamaicans, including delayed or missing pension payments, underequipped hospitals, and frontline health workers forced to operate under dangerous conditions.

“Pensioners are waiting. Hospitals are begging. Workers are suffering. But instead of addressing these needs, the prime minister is feeding the JLP’s election machine with taxpayers’ money.”

Burchell warned that this “abuse of public trust” cannot go unchallenged.

“Jamaicans are not fools. They know what’s happening. This isn’t leadership, it’s desperation, dressed up in photo ops and ads. Public funds are for public service, not political survival.”

She called for an immediate audit of all government-funded advertisements and for Jamaicans to reject the exploitation of their hard-earned money for partisan gain.

“Enough is enough. Jamaica needs real leadership, one that invests in people, not propaganda,” Burchell said.

kimone.francis@gleanerjm.com