Mark Golding, President of Jamaica’s opposition People’s National Party (PNP), has announced he will renounce his United Kingdom (UK) citizenship.
This decision comes after extensive discussions about whether an aspiring prime minister of Jamaica should hold dual citizenship.
Golding made the announcement at a PNP meeting on Sunday and later shared it via social media.
In a video where he announced his intentions, Golding said, “As promised, I would take the time to listen to views both internally and externally in making an informed decision in regards to having British citizenship by descent.”
He emphasized that while he is not legally required to give up his UK citizenship, he did not want it to affect his future candidacy.
“I do not want my status to affect our party nor any candidates who are running for a seat. I have to take all things into consideration and therefore I will renounce my UK citizenship. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and feedback over the last month. Now let’s get back to the real issues that are affecting the majority of Jamaicans,” Golding said.
Criticism of dual citizenship
Mark Golding faced criticism from members of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) who questioned his nationality after he supported the idea that dual citizens should be allowed to sit in the Houses of Parliament.
He later confirmed that he holds both Jamaican and British citizenship, the latter through his father who had migrated to Jamaica from the UK. He stated he had not renounced his British citizenship because it was not “legally necessary” for him to do so.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness also urged Golding to renounce his UK citizenship, arguing that the country’s leader should not hold dual citizenship.
“To be the ultimate leader of a country, to be the ultimate executive leader of the country, you should have no other citizenship. There should be no question by your citizens that you lead that you know that you have somehow split loyalties,” Holness said.
Golding reiterated that he would only renounce his UK citizenship if the people of Jamaica required him to.
In May, Jamaican Senator and government Minister Matthew Samuda announced that he had begun the process of renouncing his British citizenship, which he acquired at birth.
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