Chang justifies the call for a review of IC legislation

FALMOUTH, Trelawny – Addressing the party faithful at the divisional conference on Sunday evening, Jamaica Labor Party (JLP) general secretary Dr. Horace Chang sought to clarify the ruling party’s call for a review of the laws governing the body, which has raised questions about Prime Minister Andrew Holness’s decision to gain.

It’s normal, Dr. Chang said, to reassess periodically and make adjustments as needed.

“We have a history of passing laws, but also revising them in a timely manner to make them more effective or eliminate ambiguity. We know we are not perfect and no one is perfect. So no one is trying to belittle the Integrity Commission (IC). We are just saying that we will look at the legislation and see if it is really the right thing to do. I will not make this judgment from the podium,” Dr. Chang said.

He cited reviews of the Firearms Act and the Modernized Criminal Justice (Combating Criminal Organizations) (Amendment) Act 2021, commonly referred to as the anti-gang laws, as examples to support his argument.

“We just say we look at the applicable law and leave it to them,” he added.

Last week, the Prime Minister also called for a review of the regulations governing the IC to prevent the entity from becoming politicized.

Holness made this recommendation in a personal statement to Parliament following the submission to the House of the IC inquiry into his 2019-2022 Statutory Declarations together with the IC Corruption Enforcement Directorate (ICDCP) ruling.

The ICDCP concluded that there was insufficient evidence that Holness intentionally attempted to mislead the IC by failing to declare four bank accounts with total balances of just under $446,000. He did not accuse the prime minister of perjury over the omissions, but the IC raised many questions in its 179-page investigation report into Holness’s business dealings.

While the ICDCP said there was no unexplained increase in the prime minister’s wealth when examining his assets and liabilities for 2021, it did draw attention to what appeared to be an “unexplained increase” in the company founded by Holness. The report indicated that the company’s net worth of just over $1,930,000 “cannot, without a larger figure, be justified by the company’s known income and liabilities.”

According to the investigation report, DI had difficulty fully resolving the issue due to Holness’s “refusal” to provide him with a breakdown of his expenses for the period covered by the investigation.

However, in his statement to parliament, Holness said he rejected the finding on grounds of materiality and importance.

“While I did not have the opportunity to fully review the details of their calculations, after a cursory review I noticed an error in the numbers they used in their calculations,” he then said.

The opposition People’s National Party strongly called on Holness to step down as the country’s leader.

However, Dr Chang reminded party supporters in Trelawny that the IC legislation was passed during the JLP government, with Holness at the helm.

“We do not call people thieves, we do not demean people and stain their character, or try to disgust them. It’s a small country (and) we want good government. We have adopted the Act on the general contractor. We, the Labor government, already around 1980,” he complained.

“The Integrity Commission Act was passed by the Labor Party. That is why we believe there should be a good Integrity Commission,” he added.

Dr. Chang, who is also deputy prime minister and minister of national security, assured supporters that the JLP has a strong team that can protect its leader legally and politically.

“I’m just saying to you who are there, (who) have concerns, trust the man who led us to two successful elections, the first leader of the Labor Party who led us to two elections in a row, think… be confident and be assured that in He will lead you to a third term in a short time,” he appealed.

“They can throw darts, they can go further, but we have a strong team. He’s a strong man. (He) was young when he took this job, still young, but he matured and became one of the best political leaders in the Caribbean and one of the best in Jamaica’s history. We have a strong political team. There is a strong legal team advising on how to find answers and protect the party leader,” Dr. Chang added.