The People’s Partnership Government is perpetrating “grand theft” of state lands on the people of T&T, says Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley. He was speaking to supporters during a PNM meeting at the Massy Stores car park, St Augustine, on Tuesday night. He was commenting on a ruling delivered by High Court judge Frank Seepersad last week Monday.
Seepersad ordered the Minister of Planning Dr Bhoe Tewarie to release information sought by the Joint Consultative Council (JCC) on the tendering process for the Invader’s Bay, Port-of-Spain, development plan. The JCC had been denied the information after applying under the Freedom of Information Act. Seepersad said the JCC was entitled to the requested information under the Freedom of Information Act and the continued refusal by Tewarie to make the information known was illegal.
In his address to supporters on Tuesday night, Rowley said Tewarie’s decision to allow MovieTowne owner Derek Chin to develop the land was tantamount to grand theft of the nation’s patrimony. Rowley said he believed Tewarie was given legal advice that awarding the land to Chin was in breach of the Central Tenders Act. “This is your billion-dollar piece of land out there, which they want to make somebody a multi-millionaire over.”
“This is grand theft and let me tell you in case you don’t know. “You hear about the millions of dollars here and there and the half-of-a million here and there? The biggest theft that has taken place in this country is the mishandling of state lands,” he added. He said in four years the Government gave away billions of dollars of state lands.