Wheatley retains PM’s confidence, for now

PRIME Minister Dr Andrew Holness has sought to explain why his embattled Minister of Science, Technology and Special Projects Dr Andrew Wheatley retains his confidence as a member of the Cabinet.

When the question was posed to Holness on Monday during an interview on theNationwide News NetworkprogrammeCliff Hughes Online, the prime minister said, “Dr Wheatley retains my confidence in the work that he has been doing in the Office of the Prime Minister, particularly in AI and cyber and these other areas.”

The question was posed in the context of the troubling investigation report of the Integrity Commission (IC) that has recommended that Wheatley be charged with illicit enrichment.

Since the report was tabled in Parliament on June 17 there have been calls from the Opposition for Wheatley to be fired from the Cabinet.

The IC recommended that the Member of Parliament (MP) for St Catherine South Central be charged with illicit enrichment, false declarations, and failure to provide information. According to the IC, Wheatley possessed assets disproportionate to his lawful earnings, amounting to approximately $164 million, and failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for the discrepancy.

However, Wheatley has rejected the findings as baseless and insists that every dollar and asset he owns was lawfully acquired. He has accused investigators of ignoring evidence that he said would have significantly changed the outcome of the probe.

Holness told Hughes that he has not examined the report in detail, but said, “I do intend to be briefed by the attorneys as to exactly what is stated in the report.” He also acknowledged that the charges recommended by the IC are serious.

“The challenge, of course, is that no charge has yet been proffered on him, so until that point we will observe the situation.

“Today I’m going to leave here [the interview], run back to Cabinet, I expect to see Minister Wheatley there, and we will have a fulsome discussion with him directly on the report and what to expect in the future,” added Holness.

He then offered an explanation as to why Wheatley was brought back to the Cabinet after he was forced to resign at the height of the Petrojam scandal in 2018 when he served in the executive as energy minister, although he was not ultimately accused of any wrongdoing.

HOLNESS…Dr Wheatley retains my confidence in the work that he has been doing in the Office of the Prime Minister, particularly in AI and cyber and other areas.

Yet, he resigned amid growing calls from the Opposition and civil society groups at the time. The Petrojam scandal involved allegations of corruption, cronyism, and victimisation at the State-owned oil refinery, as well as questions surrounding the use of public funds. Following mounting pressure, Wheatley resigned in July 2018.

When he was asked on Monday if he has regrets about reappointing Wheatley to the Cabinet, Holness said, “You will recall that Minister Wheatley, at the time, resigned in the Petrojam affair, and after the 2020 election I did not reappoint him because those matters were not yet resolved.”

“Those matters were since resolved and therefore he was cleared to be reappointed,” the prime minister said.

Regarding the current matters Holness emphasised that, “I was totally unaware of any report or any investigation [into Wheatley].”

Taking a swipe at the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP), he said, “I’m not aware of investigations that are ongoing. It seems to me that the PNP would know more about it, about investigations ongoing than I do.”

Opposition Leader Mark Golding has constantly stated that, to the best of his knowledge, no PNP MP or senator is under investigation by the IC for illicit enrichment.

When asked by Hughes if he had confidence in the IC, Holness responded with, “The Integrity Commission is a necessary agency to tackle corruption in Jamaica. I believe there are changes that are necessary for it to become more effective.”

When pressed by the interviewer, the prime minister insisted that the IC needed an overhaul.

“And this is not just my opinion. I believe the Integrity Commission itself has suggested that there are changes that would make it more effective.”