LUCEA, Hanover — Former mayor of Lucea Sheridan Samuels, who was re-elected to represent the Cauldwell Division, is calling on Prime Minister Andrew Holness to retract claims he made that Hanover currently has one of the lowest rates of property tax returns on the island.

Holness’s comments came on the pre-campaign trail during a visit to Hanover in the run-up to the local government elections.

“Look at the date when you said it prime minister, and look at the records, and retract that statement,” challenged a strident Samuels, who served as mayor of Lucea between November 2016 and February 2024.

His request came during an interview following his election victory on Monday.

Holness made the controversial statement during a ground-breaking ceremony for a new matron’s quarters and the official opening of a therapeutic park at the Hanover Infirmary on January 20.

“One of the conversations I had [with people in the market] centred around property tax,” he said then.

“Hanover has one of the lowest rates of property tax returns,” Holness added.

The comments from the prime minister were surprising as the parish was once named an enviable leader in property tax collection, as noted by the local authorities.

On Monday, Samuels argued that the statement “is a lie” because the parish has always performed above expectation in the collection of property taxes.

“When he came to the market and said it and we looked at the records for the property tax collection, we saw Hanover way at the top, you understand. We have never fallen underneath the threshold that is given to us,” stated Samuels.

“Hanover is one of the best-collecting parishes in this country. So, when the prime minister came and said that, it was just a political move,” he added.