Young Jamaica, the youth arm of the governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), is calling on People’s National Party (PNP) President Mark Golding to immediately disclose whether the company owned by his beleaguered PNP Region 3 Chairman, which is currently engulfed in the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) tax exemption scandal, made campaign donations to the PNP in the lead up to the September 3, 2025 General Election.

Young Jamaica is of the view that the public has a right to know whether JACDEN Limited, which is owned by Member of Parliament (MP) Dennis Gordon, and which benefited from what the Auditor General described as an unlawful and inappropriate process, used those ill-gotten benefits to help fund the PNP’s General Election campaign.

Young Jamaica said in a release: “Golding must state how much money, if any, was donated by JACDEN to the PNP between January 2022 and September 2025.

“Furthermore, Young Jamaica is not surprised by the robust defence launched by Golding of the company owned by his Region 3 Chairman, which is currently engulfed in the multi-million-dollar tax exemption scandal.

“We also note that after the prolonged silence and amidst mounting pressure in the public domain, Golding had the temerity to issue a statement which twice insisted that he was not aware of any law being breached by Gordon’s company. This is despite the Auditor General’s report outlining instances where several laws were indeed breached through the UHWI’s misuse of its tax exemption status, benefitting private companies such as JACDEN. A number of investigative bodies have also since launched probes into the messy situation at the institution.

“Though not at all surprising given his history of avoiding accountability, Golding’s response is disgraceful, unacceptable, indefensible, and repugnant.

“Young Jamaica renews its call for Dennis Gordon to resign as PNP Region 3 Chairman and Member of Parliament for East Central St Andrew.

“A mere recusal from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament and Shadow Cabinet does not nearly suffice for Gordon’s outright contempt for the public, especially when his own entity made targeted blows to press freedom by threatening media houses with litigation for exercising their right to report on the ongoing scandal.” 

Young Jamaica also stands by its call for Julian Robinson, who launched an ill-advised and ill-fated defence of JACDEN and Dennis Gordon, to immediately resign as Chairman of the PAC. Members of the public have lost confidence in his ability to objectively and effectively execute the nation’s business without blatant political bias.