KINGSTON, Jamaica—Minister of Culture Olivia Grange has criticised Opposition Leader Mark Golding for what she describes as his attempt to take credit for the decision to honour dancehall stars Bounty Killer and Beenie Man and improperly draw them into the political fray.

“It was not just my pleasure but my duty to nominate you and Beenie Man. I am glad it was accepted,” Golding wrote in a post on Instagram.

That comment was made below a post by Bounty Killer, where the dancehall great acknowledged his award following the conclusion of the Grand Gala at the National Stadium on Tuesday.

In a statement on Thursday, Grange noted that the decision to honour and award Beenie Man, whose real name is Moses Davis, and Bounty Killer, whose given name is Rodney Price, was made by the Government long before the Opposition Leader attempted to intervene.

According to Grange, Golding has misled the public and the artistes. She said it is unfortunate and unbecoming that Golding has sought to break protocol by politicising and baselessly claiming credit for the national awards.

“The awards were made based on recommendations from a sub-committee appointed by the prime minister, which advised the Cabinet as a whole. No individual is given personal credit for getting an award for anyone. It is a Cabinet decision by the Government of Jamaica. Long before Mark Golding sought to exploit the process, the legendary artistes were already nominated,” said Grange.

She argued that it is unusual and improper for an individual to attempt to take credit for a national award being bestowed.

“It is also customary where multiple nominations are received, with some containing insufficient information, while others are well-prepared. In fact, former minister [under a People’s National Party Government] Dr Omar Davies and I established a principled approach where he would invite me to co-sign his nomination to show a non-political approach. We did this without going public,” added Grange.

She said she has always advanced the process of acknowledging the contributions of creatives, including members of the entertainment industry.

“Golding’s move to politicise the awards given to Bounty and Beenie is a vulgar attempt to exploit the artistes for political one-upmanship. Never before have we seen a political representative seek to claim credit for a national honour given to a Jamaican by the Government of Jamaica based on a Cabinet decision and the work put in by the awardee,” said Grange.

“More entertainers and creatives have been nominated and given awards through my initiative and under this Government than at any time in Jamaica’s history, and I have not bragged about it, publicised that I initiated it, or attempted to politicise what is really a national initiative in the interest of unity and rewarding those who have done our country proud—and there are many more who will receive,” added Grange.

She said the Opposition Leader’s attempt to improperly claim credit for the awards given to both artistes is disgraceful and a vulgar attempt to draw the musical icons into the political fray.

According to Grange, “Mr Golding should desist from the path of misleading vulgarity on which he has embarked.”

She said this represents an “unfortunate and unprincipled departure from long-established protocol.”