Golding claims Chavez planning to pump money into PNP’s election campaign
OPPOSITION Leader Bruce Golding says his party is pursuing information that the Venezuelan Government plans to support the ruling People’s National Party (PNP), financially, in the general election likely to be held later this year.
Golding did not name the country, referring only to a “South American country”, but indicated a trend of political support, pointing to Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez. A spokesman for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) also told the Observer after the meeting that the leader was indeed referring to Chavez.
“We have a team that is watching this one. This money is not going to come through any wire service that we can intercept it, like Trafigura. This is the one that will come in a brown paper bag,” Golding said.
He told labourites attending the party’s Area Council One monthly meeting at Kingston College on Sunday that following its failure to use money to influence presidential elections in Peru, as well as last month’s general election in St Lucia, the “South American” nation was turning its attention next to Jamaica.
Golding suggested that this could become “Trafigura 2”. He warned that Jamaica has enjoyed good diplomatic relations with that country for a long time.
“We intend to maintain those relations when we become government, and I urge them, do not compromise; do not contaminate those relations by using the weight that that country happens to enjoy to interfere, to seek to influence, in any way, the outcome of the next elections, which must be the determination solely of the people of Jamaica,” he said.
But Information Minister Donald Buchanan on Monday dismissed Golding’s allegations as “political propaganda and grandstanding”.
“I really regard Mr Golding’s utterances are pure political propaganda and his usual grandstanding,” Buchanan said. He was responding to questions on the issue raised at yesterday’s post- cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.
Buchanan also accused the Opposition of delaying a decision on campaign financing, by refusing to participate in the joint select committee, which was proposed to discuss a bill tabled in Parliament by independent MP Abe Dabdoub on the issue. The JLP refused to join the committee on the basis that it felt that the Electoral Commission should decide policy on campaign financing.
