The Peoples National Party is warning Daryl Vaz that action will be taken if he follows through on plans to monitor the citizenship application of Dr. Shane Alexis.

The PNP says it unequivocally repudiates Mr. Vaz threat to expose private and confidential information on Dr. Alexis application.

Dr. Alexis recently applied for Jamaican citizenship following concern that he should not be running for political office since he was not born in Jamaica.

It was revealed that Dr. Alexis was born in Canada, but this will not hinder him in his bid to become Member of Parliament for South East St. Mary as the constitution allows for persons born in a Commonwealth country to sit in Gordon House.

Last night (Oct 28), while addressing JLP supporters in St. Mary, Mr. Vaz stated that he has contacts at the Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) and that he will be monitoring the status of Dr. Alexis application for citizenship, even after tomorrows by election.

In a statement this afternoon (Oct 29) PNP General Secretary Julian Robinson says the party is alarmed and outraged by Mr. Vaz comments about his ability to obtain private and confidential information on Dr. Alexis’ citizenship application.

Mr. Robinson says although Dr. Alexis has nothing to hide, what Vaz plans to do would be a blatant misuse of power and a troubling invasion of Dr. Alexis privacy for purely political purposes.

He says this is not just an attack on Dr. Alexis, but also a threat to the privacy of every Jamaican, especially those who, for one reason or another, have used the services of pica.

Mr. Robinson says this level of abuse of power is synonymous with dictatorship, adding that Mr. Vaz needs to remind himself that Jamaica is still a democracy, governed by the rule of law.

He says should the private information of Dr. Alexis or that of his family be compromised in any way by the action of Mr. Vaz in the furtherance of a desperate smear campaign, the PNP would immediately call upon the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA) to launch an investigation to secure the integrity of PICA.

Mr. Robinson is also calling on Minister of National Security Robert Montague to guarantee that the system at pica is not compromised and to ensure that the records of every Jamaican remains secured and confidential.