{"id":82,"date":"2025-05-21T15:13:54","date_gmt":"2025-05-21T20:13:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.holnessuncertified.com\/?p=82"},"modified":"2025-05-21T15:13:54","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T20:13:54","slug":"pm-holness-taking-ic-to-court-over-statutory-declarations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.holnessuncertified.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/21\/pm-holness-taking-ic-to-court-over-statutory-declarations\/","title":{"rendered":"PM Holness Taking IC to Court Over Statutory Declarations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Posted by\u00a0George Davis<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a01 Oct, 2024<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The standoff between the Prime Minister, Andrew Holness and the Integrity Commission, concerning his uncertified statutory declarations has taken a major turn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Prime Minister has gone to the Supreme Court to seek judicial review of the actions, non actions and comments made by the Commission and two of its Directors; Craig Beresford, the Director of Information and Complaints and Kevon Stephenson, Director of Investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The move by Holness relates to the contents of two reports tabled in parliament and which concern his statutory declarations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first report is dated August 30, 2024 and the second, September 5, 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have more in this report from George Davis.

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The application filed on behalf of Prime Minister Holness by his attorneys, Henlin Gibson Henlin, is stamped September 30, 2024, Civil Division, Supreme Court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It names Holness and three of his companies; Imperium Holdings Limited, Positive Media Solutions and Positive Jamaica Foundation as the three applicants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three companies named are the same three flagged by the Integrity Commission as the subject of further investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The IC has declared publicly that it wants the probe to be done by Tax Administration Jamaica, TAJ and the Financial Investigations Division, FID.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beresford, Stephenson and the Integrity Commission are the three respondents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holness\u2019 attorneys have set down 30 points on which they are seeking judicial review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among them; that Craig Beresford and, or, the Commission failed to or refused to certify his declarations for 2021 and 22, and or provide reasons for being unable to certify them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That Kevon Stephenson carried out an investigation into the Prime Minister\u2019s declarations for 2022 and 2023, although there was no referral for an investigation by Craig Beresford.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holness\u2019 lawyers want a judicial review into Kevon Stephenson\u2019s finding or decision that the Prime Minister\u2019s lawful objection to the request for his detailed expenses, is a refusal to provide information, which then inhibited Stephenson\u2019s ability to make a comprehensive and final assessment of the Prime Minister\u2019s assets, liabilities and income.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They want a review of Stephenson\u2019s decision to, in their words, usurp the functions of the court and unlawfully pierce the corporate veil of Imperium Holdings Limited, which, according to them, is a separate legal person in law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They say Stephenson thereafter commingled the assets of the Prime Minister and that of Imperium and then ascribed to both a combined net worth of 1-point-9-million dollars for 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holness\u2019 lawyers also want judicial review of the decision to continue or keep the investigation open in relation to the Prime Minister\u2019s declarations for 2021, notwithstanding findings or conclusions that for the year 2021 there was negative net worth of 10-point-4-million dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means that there was no unexplained growth in the Prime Minister\u2019s net worth, which according to the numbers, actually declined by the said 10-point-4-million dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holness\u2019 attorneys also want judicial review of the act or decision to recommend the referral to TAJ and FID, two of the three companies linked to Holness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holness\u2019 lawyers want the curt to rule on the failure by Kevon Stephenson and the Integrity Commission to recommend and or issue a public exoneration of culpability at the point where it ended its investigation into the Prime Minister\u2019s 2021 declarations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His lawyers complain to the court that what Stephenson and the IC then proceeded to do was improperly include details of that 2021 investigations in the report dated August 30, 2024, an act which they feel robbed Holness of benefiting from being freed of guilt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The filing on Holness\u2019 behalf, which runs for 22 pages, goes deep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It sets out 69 grounds on which judicial review is being sought under the headings, breach of natural justice and procedural fairness, constitutional breaches, irrationality and unreasonableness, abuse of power, abuse of discretion, illegality and acting ultra vires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The action by Holness marks the first time the Prime Minister has publicly gone on the front foot, to counterattack on an issue that has seen him bleed political capital and give Jamaicans cause to question his integrity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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PM Holness Taking IC to Court Over Statutory Declarations<\/a><\/blockquote>