Tanya Stephens Calls Out Andrew Holness After Backlash Over Not Shaking His Hand
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March 3, 2025
Tanya Stephens took to social media on Sunday to hit back at critics after getting backlash for not shaking Prime Minister Andrew Holness’ hand at an event organised by Ian ‘Pepe’ Goodison. However, the singer accused Holness of editing the video which sparked the backlash so it would appear that she did not shake his hand.
On Saturday, the Prime Minister shared a video of him greeting several individuals at Goodison’s event. The interactions appeared friendly, with Holness seen shaking hands and embracing some of the attendees.
However, as he greeted Tanya, the artiste appeared to keep her hands in her pockets throughout the interaction.
Tanya shared several bad comments on her Instagram page made by social media users who reacted to the video.
One viewer dubbed her actions unprofessional, while another suggested that she be punished.
“How u fi have u hand in a pocket n refuse to shaje tbe PM hand. U sad. U dark. U must pay for such shit,” the viewer wrote.
Another user criticised her for smiling during the interaction.
“Tanya was being disrespectful there yet she is smiling… Why? One does not have to like everyone but should be equally respectful,” the viewer said.
In the post’s caption, Tanya highlighted that she is a free citizen who does not owe any man a “touch.” While she did not call the prime minister by name, the artiste seemingly suggested that he was the one who intentionally had the video edited to create a specific narrative.
“Who you should distrust is the one who edited the footage to pander to the bottom feeders who support him. Be very afraid of the person who cut off the handshake and audio while placing my response to New Kidz’ joke to seem like I was laughing with him,” Tanya wrote.
Dubbing him “bro lyad,” the It’s a Pity singer said that he should release the full video. She also said that Holness should stop trying to be friendly with her and instead stick with the “brain-dead sycophants” who follow him.
View Tanya’s full statement below.
