Golding shows his ‘birth paper’ at election debate
People’s National Party (PNP) President Mark Golding’s renounced British citizenship was one of the issues brought up at the leadership debate on Thursday night, with the Opposition leader taking the opportunity to show a copy of his birth certificate during his presentation.
Golding said he also had a copy of the document for Prime Minister Andrew Holness.
Later on in the debate, CVM Television’s Giovanni Dennis enquired from Golding why he never acknowledged his dual nationality upfront and why should Jamaicans believe he would be forthcoming with them on any issue even it’s uncomfortable to him.
In response, Golding said he “didn’t hesitate to acknowledge dual citizenship”.
“I was born in Jamaica, I had a British father, and I inherited British citizenship by decent from him; that’s lawful under the laws of Jamaica, and indeed, parliamentarians in Jamaica are permitted to be dual nations,” Golding explained.
“I, therefore, didn’t consider it to be something which was problematic. However, when it was raised last year and politicised, I decided I want to know what the Jamaican people felt about it because I thought really my response ought to be driven by them,” he added.
The Opposition leader said he chose to renounce his British citizenship in August of last year, following the findings of an internal poll in which the majority of respondents said Golding should renounce.
In response, Holness said it was a very “strange” development relative to Golding’s citizenship.
“A man who wants to represent his country must choose his country. He doesn’t need to ask anyone. He should choose, and that’s why we (the JLP) say we choose Jamaica,” Holness quipped.
“It is indeed of concern that it was not until your 40s, when you were becoming a minister of government, you sought to have a Jamaican passport. It is not your birth that makes you Jamaican. It is the choices you make for your country, including supporting a process that would make a Jamaican head of state here [in Jamaica], including getting a Jamaican passport,” Holness declared.
