Channer to step down as NHT chairman
Published:Wednesday | May 25, 2022 | 3:35 PM
Business executive Lennox Channer is to step down as chairman of the National Housing Trust (NHT).
His resignation will take effect on August 31.
"My increased professional obligations alongside personal commitments have prompted this decision," Channer told staff at the government entity in a memo this morning.
He added: "I have seen substantial growth during the time that I have served the NHT and I am confident that the organisation will continue to grow."
On Monday, Channer declined to comment when The Gleaner questioned him on his resignation and about reports that Prime Minister Andrew Holness asked him to stay on for an additional three months.
Channer was appointed in 2018, replacing Dr Nigel Clarke, the current finance minister.
Channer's tenure coincided with an intensified public debate over the role of the state agency in providing affordable housing to Jamaicans through its low-interest mortgages.
Just last week, Prime Minister Holness sparked controversy after saying the agency, whose funds have been used by successive administrations to plug holes in budgets, was a business and not a charity.
The NHT is funded by a tax on incomes.
READ MORE: NHT not a charity says Holness
Channer is group vice president, accounting and administration at Jamaica Broilers Group, an agri-business that specialises in chickens.
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