SAMUDA PRESSES PNP ON TAX PLANS – Crawford Fires Back: “No More Taxes Needed”

Jamaica – Fireworks sparked during Saturday night’s #JaDebates2025 as JLP representative Matthew Samuda turned up the heat on the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP), demanding answers on whether they would raise taxes if elected.

Samuda, speaking during the heated debate on social issues, reminded Jamaicans of the high-tax era under the last PNP administration. He challenged the PNP team to come clean on their fiscal agenda, suggesting that a return to government could mean more financial pressure for struggling Jamaicans.

But Damion Crawford, representing the PNP, pushed back hard. He defended his party’s track record, saying the PNP had to take over a damaged economy in 2012 and made the hard calls to put the country back on solid footing.

Crawford was firm: “There is absolutely no need… to engage in further taxation,” he stated, making it clear that the PNP’s focus would be on growth, not squeezing the people.

The tax debate was one of the most tense moments of the night, highlighting a sharp divide between the parties on economic strategy and who really has the people’s best interest at heart.

With elections around the corner, voters are watching closely — and both sides are feeling the pressure to prove they can deliver without punishing pockets.

Related posts:

Alleged Gunman Killed in Linstead, Police Seize Illegal Firearm Youth dominate team to Caribbean Amateur Golf championship Wanted Man Killed in Police Confrontation in Portmore Bahamas Signs $300M Agreement With China for New Specialty Hospital Man Shot Dead in Stony Hill, St Andrew Police Recover Cop’s Glock Stolen by Killers in Beechwood Avenue Gas Station Murder