KINGSTON, Jamaica— The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) councillors of the St Ann Municipal Corporation today called for the resignation of chairman and  Mayor of St Ann’s Bay, Michael Belnavis.

Belnavis has been at the centre of controversy over the construction of a charging port for his personal Porsche motor vehicle and a $46 million sanitisation project in Ocho Rios.

Minister of Local Government and Community Development,  Desmond McKenzie, who is also a Deputy Leader of the JLP, said the councillors made the decision following a meeting earlier today.

“The JLP councillors requested a meeting with me, and the recent controversies surrounding the St Ann Municipal Corporation, and specifically the issues involving the chairman were fully discussed at length. This meeting was attended by all 11 JLP councillors including the mayor, and the unanimous conclusion was that it was in the best interest of the Municipal Corporation to have the mayor step aside, while the matters ventilated in the public domain are investigated,” McKenzie said.

“The councillors also strongly expressed the importance of ensuring that the Municipal Corporation adheres to modern principles and standards of good governance, that are foundation stones of the Local Governance Act.” 

The minister noted that while the councillors did not accuse the mayor of wrongdoing, they “strongly felt that the present atmosphere took attention away from the regulatory and development agenda that the Municipal Corporation should be focused on.”

“The Councillors are committed to accountability and transparency as best practices of Local Government,” McKenzie said.