More calls for Dennis Gordon to step aside

Calls are mounting for People’s National Party (PNP) Member of Parliament Dennis Gordon to resign from Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) after it was disclosed that the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) misused its tax exemption status to import goods for his company.

Political commentator Lloyd B. Smith has also criticised the PNP’s leadership for its silence on the issue and urged the party to take decisive disciplinary action against Gordon.

“This does not augur well for our democracy in terms of the opposition party, or for that matter, the ruling party, functions when such incidents occur. There needs to be a more swift and decisive approach so as to allow for probity and transparency in governance matters,” Smith told The Gleaner.

“I would expect his party to take the bull by the horns and take whatever disciplinary action it can take and not allow for the thing to fester any further,” he added.

Gordon’s company, JACDEN Limited, is one of four entities that benefited from the UHWI’s misuse of its tax exemption status.

The other companies are Supreme Laundry Services, Willman Sales, and Scientific Medical Services, which contributed to total losses amounting to $23.1 million.

The Integrity Commission, the police, and the Jamaica Customs Agency are all undertaking separate probes into the breaches, which were uncovered in an audit of the health facility in January by the Auditor General’s Department.

Gordon is a member of the PAC and MP for St Andrew East Central.

He offered no comment on the issue when contacted by The Gleaner this morning.

Yesterday, PAC Chairman Julian Robinson disclosed that Gordon had repaid the UHWI the monies his company would have saved through the waived customs duties, which amounted to approximately $10 million.

Gordon had also recused himself from Tuesday’s sitting of the PAC meeting, which examined the multimillion-dollar breaches that were uncovered in an audit of the health facility.

Smith, however, stated that this repayment does not absolve Gordon of his moral responsibility as a public servant and reiterated that he should step aside.

“From all indications, it's clear that his company was the beneficiary of whatever took place. So, on that basis, I would want to think that he should not only recuse himself but he should resign from that particular committee,” he said.

Executive Director of Jamaicans for Justice, Mickel Jackson, also believes Gordon should recuse himself from the parliamentary committee.

“If he does not do so voluntarily, he should be removed to eliminate any perception of conflict of interest. Otherwise, it will be difficult for the public to take the PAC proceedings seriously,” she said in a post on social media platform X.

Like Smith, she does not believe that the payment of funds to UHWI by Gordon is enough to exonerate him of any culpability.

“While that is a step in the right direction, it doesn’t excuse Mr Gordon from any possible fines or penalties that may very well be imposed following the outcome of an investigation from the different bodies, such as the IC or MOCA (Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency),” she told The Gleaner.

She also stressed that while the UHWI is liable to repay all misused funds, the private companies involved should not only repay the funds but also face appropriate fines or penalties.

Young Jamaica, the youth arm of the governing Jamaica Labour Party, has called for Gordon’s resignation as a Member of Parliament, PNP Region 3 Chairman, and PAC member.

In a previous statement issued in February, JACDEN Group of Companies maintained that its engagement with UHWI was compliant and that the Auditor General’s findings pointed to administrative and systemic failures within the hospital, not misconduct by the company.

“The report identifies administrative and systemic failures within UHWI’s internal procurement and customs-related processes and does not conclude that JACDEN caused or directed those failures,” the company said, adding that its operations were conducted under formal arrangements and in accordance with applicable procedures.

JACDEN is a healthcare and janitorial services company based in St Andrew.

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