Government MPs back Holness

Government members of parliament have "unequivocally" given their support to Prime Minister Andrew Holness in the wake of the controversy surrounding his asset declarations to the Integrity Commission.

"As representatives of the Jamaican people, we stand united with Prime Minister Holness and we will defend his name and reputation with the full force of the Constitution and the law," a statement released on behalf of the caucus of Government MPs said on Friday.

Leader of Government Business in the House of Representatives, Edmund Bartlett, who heads the caucus, accused the Parliamentary Opposition of "misusing and misrepresenting reports of the Integrity Commission to malign the Prime Minister".

"It is important to note that the Integrity Commission has not identified any evidence of wrongdoing by the Prime Minister despite years of investigation, significant expenditure of funds and overseas technical assistance," Bartlett said.

He said the Government MPs would not tolerate any politically motivated attacks on the prime minister's character or his leadership.

The statement also said the Government caucus is concerned about the Opposition's "apparent insider knowledge" of the Integrity Commission's activities which should be confidential.

The Government Senate caucus has already expressed its full support for Holness.

The Integrity Commission's Director of Corruption Prosecutions, Keisha Prince-Kameka, has ruled out criminal charges against Holness for allegedly making false income declarations.

However, the Integrity Commission has referred its report on the prime minister's income and assets to the Financial Investigations Division, saying "there can be no finality" in the certification of assets for 2019-2022 without further probe. 

Certain aspects of the report have also been referred to the tax authorities for investigation.

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