There are bigger issues than Golding’s dual citizenship

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I am writing with reference to the letter published on June 21 titled ‘PNP could benefit from P.J.’s wisdom’. I disagree with the author’s analysis. The author referring to P.J. and Andrew wrote, “they are both emotionally well controlled…..”. Was it well controlled for Andrew to walk out of Parliament while the leader of the Opposition was making his contribution to the Budget Debate and respectfully pointed out that it was not proper for Andrew’s wife to be Speaker of the House?

The author then goes on to state, “Holness has moved off the constitutional reform issue .... On the other hand, the leader of the Opposition does not appear to be able to rise above the crises. Worse, he doesn’t seem to hold a consistent position”. I disagree. Holness doesn’t want meaningful constitutional reform. He seems to want constitutional reform that solely benefits the JLP. In 2016, Holness trumpeted that within the first 100 days of a JLP administration he would see to legislation that provided for impeachment of parliamentarians who breached their duty to perform. It is now over 2,000 days since that bold statement and no impeachment legislation has been tabled or passed. And there’s more, his own minister of legal and constitutional affairs, Marlene Malahoo Forte, stated recently that she opposes any impeachment legislation. Really? How did we go from impeachment legislation in the first 100 days to no impeachment legislation over 2,000 days later.

The author also took Golding to task regarding his dual Jamaican and English citizenship. But she missed the mark there, too. The attack on Golding’s dual nationality is an attempted political distraction, a red herring. The Jamaican Constitution allows citizens of the Commonwealth to hold elected office, including that of prime minister (PM), provided they meet a residency requirement. He is Jamaican. Curiously, Holness recently asserted that members of parliament can be dual citizens, but the PM of Jamaica should not be a dual national. How convenient, when the Constitution of Jamaica states otherwise, that you muse a ‘feeling’ which directly impacts your opponent. Edward Seaga, a former PM of Jamaica, was born in the US. I never heard Holness express any concern about that fact nor anyone else in the JLP.

What seems to have escaped many is that Golding is in compliance with the Constitution and laws of Jamaica. Yet his Jamaican credentials are being questioned because he has British citizenship which he derived through his father. He does not need to ‘give up’ his British citizenship to be leader of the Opposition or PM of Jamaica. These misconceived arguments about dual nationality are not persuasive. High inflation, a lack of jobs that pay well, corruption, mismanagement, a lack of proper healthcare for Jamaicans, income inequality, these and many other problems need serious attention. Not Golding’s dual nationality.

OLIVER LANGSTADT

Attorney-at-law

Florida