'I never made any money on the backs of the Jamaican people' - Holness
Published:Sunday | August 10, 2025 | 10:45 PM
Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness says he has gone through financial struggles “just like everybody else”.
Holness has faced public criticism since his statutory declaration for 2021 triggered an illicit enrichment investigation by the Integrity Commission (IC), Jamaica’s main anti-corruption watchdog.
The prime minister, like other public officials, is required to file a statutory declaration of his income, assets and liabilities annually.
His declarations for 2021, 2022 and 2023 have still not been certified by the IC.
Details of the IC’s illicit enrichment probe were outlined in an affidavit filed by an official of the anti-corruption body in response to a lawsuit the prime minister filed against the commission.
But speaking at a mass meeting of his governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) in St Andrew on Sunday, Holness cryptically said:”I want to thank those who thought that by releasing documents they would somehow diminish me”.
He did not call names.
“Whatever likkle I made in life, I made it just like you. A buy two taxi, then a open a taxi company and a go through the struggle just like everybody else,” he said, making reference to information contained in the affidavit of Craig Beresford, director of information and complaints at the IC.
“I am a true Jamaican. I went through the Jamaican struggle and I never made any money on the backs of the Jamaican people. I never made any money off a government,” he said to wild applause from supporters.
However, he again slammed the parliamentary opposition over the Financial Sector Adjustment Company (FINSAC) debacle, which he said followed the high-interest rate policy of the then People’s National Party-led government.
Without naming anyone, the prime minister charged that “the man who claimed that him is a tapanaris, he was the one who benefitted”.
“No poor person in Jamaica should ever allow that man to touch the economy because he and his friend will go back to the high-interest rate policies so that they can benefit from it and continue where they left off of transferring wealth from you to their coffers,” Holness charged.
- Livern Barrett
Follow The Gleaner on X and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.