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| NRP Representative Hensley Daniel |
The rather feeble and latent attempt by Minister Guishard to absolve himself from blame in the corrupt manner in which he and his brother have fleeced the people of Nevis the 80 acres of land at Jessups have been brought to my attention for response and reply. I am very much aware that in his desperate attempt to extricate himself and his family from this "sweetheart" land deal he has implicated some decent people in his attempt to deceive and mislead.
We shall forthwith dispense with these falsehoods. The foolish statement that the Daniel family members bought 0.50 acre of land at Prospect for less than the other persons has to stand up to the following facts: in 1982 the NRP government in an effort to empower its people sold lands to its citizens for approximately $6,000.00 an acre for tenants and $12,000.00 an acre for non-tenants.
Lands were being sold in 1982-1986 at Nisbett's/Rawlins Pasture, Hardtimes, Fothergills/Hickman's, Eden Brown/Butlers, Hamilton and Prospects. Everybody who was a citizen and who did not have any land was allowed to buy a piece of land. The Daniel family members all bought 0.50 acre of land at Prospect at the non-tenant price of $12,000.00 an acre. We were among some 75 families who were accommodated.
That was 1984. Nevisians were allowed to pay by installment as they obtained funding The Corporation was not yet set up. All persons had to obtain crown grant from the Ministry of Agriculture. Mr. Elmo Liburd was the Permanent Secretary and Mr. Arthur Evelyn, the Minister. Joseph Parry became a Minister of Government in 1987 when this programme had ceased. What then is the point? Let Mr. Guishard say that his brother Hillary did not get a large tract of Government land from the Corporation at Malcolm Hill. There was never any favoritism shown to any member of the Daniel family. Clean as a whistle!
Now let us return to how this land cookie has crumbled. Pinneys Investment Company was found to be a rogue company by the Nevis Island Government in 2001. LAH Holdings, Estate of Mind and Steele Douglas all bought their lands in 1999 before the company was found to be a prodigal by the government. Let not Mr. Guishard say that these persons obtained lands from the company on government's permission. It follows therefore that since 2001 the Pinneys Investment Company was at the mercy of the Nevis Island Government.
Mr. Guishard cabinet submission dated August 29 2002 stated in no small measure that the company and the government entered into an agreement on June 29 2001 the fulfillment of which the company was in breach of. I challenge Mr. Guishard in the interest of the people of Nevis to make available to the public the agreement with the company of June 29 2001. The government ought to have taken all the lands in the interest of the people of Nevis.
The cabinet submission said at paragraph #6 that the Inland Revenue had assessed the Pinneys Investment Company indebtedness to government in a sum in excess of US$2.3 million. The CCM government took land for money owing, a land for money deal. The company gave them 150 acres. The CCM administration also purchased 95.48 acres in the same area for One Million United States dollars. The questions I wish to ask Mr. Guishard as the custodian of the people of Nevis is whose firm was asked to provide a professional valuation of those 250 acres of land. What is curious is that the government bought the land at US $10,000.00 an acre.
It follows that the 150 acres was for the sum of US $1.5 million. The big question is what has happened to the other US$800,000.00 dollars worth of land owing to the Nevis Island Government. Take US $2.3M from land value of $1.5M and you get the picture. The people of Nevis and the CCM government should have had 230 acres of land. Instead they were allowed to get only 150 because somebody had their eyes on the other princely 80 acres. The 80 acres belonging to the people of Nevis I charge have been left off for you know who.
Let Mr. Guishard also say whether or not LAH Holdings represented by Deon Daniel did not have a signed contract with Pinneys Investment Company to purchase one hundred (100) acres of land at Jessups for US $10,000.00 an acre. That contract with a private local company was thwarted by Minister Guishard for and on behalf of the people of Nevis. LAH Holdings had already instructed surveyors and realtors in the persons of Dave Simon and Stephen Walwyn. The CCM government used its muscle to intervene and buy out a local company to prevent a local developer who had had great success from furthering his business interest.
However according to Minister Guishard when his dearly beloved brother asked him as minister if he could get land in Nevis he duly obliged and sent Hillary to the company's lawyers with instructions. Sweet! Sweet! Sweetheart Deal! LAH Holdings run by local Nevisians based in Nevis all their lives had to run go elsewhere in favour of brother beloved who had lived abroad all his life.
So then anybody who wanted land from PIC had to deal and have the blessing of Guishard. The company who owns the 26 acres by Sunshine had to get the government to take the land and transfer same to them. Government's blessing you had to have never mind your money. I want to dispense with this foolish matter of Alistair Yearwood and his valuation. First of all his valuation was done after the sale was consummated.
The purpose of asking him to value was to tie the hands of an NRP operative. Nobody is going to commission a valuation and pay money in excess of same. We are not ourselves interested in the value our point is these 80 acres are lands that should have been transferred to government on the basis of the amount of money owing and the value of US $10,000.00 an acre. It was in effect government lands. Further even if it were not why did not Minister Guishard exercise his muscle and purchase same for and on behalf of the people of Nevis.
There is another corruptible deal. Minister Guishard blocked off all the lands of PIC from the access by the purchase of the 250 acres. There was therefore no access to those lands. The simple reason is that the government wished to be the sole owner of land in that area. Enter Brother Hillary who we the naïve people here on Nevis who did not have a chance to go to school and read must accept as talking to his only brother on earth one day and asking him about lands.
Here is what has happened. Hillary Guishard is allowed to purchase the land that was the people of Nevis at a princely sum. However in order for him to get access and reach his land the CCM led Nevis Island Administration cut a path 25 feet wide across its land for almost 2,000 feet to give Brother Hillary access. Now who has helped whom? Even if the lands were bought access could never have been obtained had not government through the Corporation allowed this rip-off to happen. See how far overboard to help brother from afar. Remember that Deon Daniel and a group of boys from home were sent packing for the 100 acres.
This same legal process to have this land was stabbed in the back when lawyers for the company and government turned up in court to have their say. Lo and behold a letter from the legal adviser who had been Secretary to the Company was delivered to the court by the lawyer for the company. The letter said that the same government had no further interest in the case. The government lawyers there present were shocked and stunned but could do nothing about it.
Their only recourse was to demand their fees. When those were not forthcoming the US $300,000.00 was sent to Jamaica by none other than Malcolm Guishard. We have come full circle. I challenge anybody to say to me that this was not a deal laced through and through with corruption, nepotism and favoritism.
We have not seen and heard the tip of the iceberg of this deal. No amount of comparing with me and my brothers and sister who have bought a lowly half acre of in the land of our birth could be compared with this wanton giveaway of our patrimony and national asset. If ever there is a time for this and all other ministers of this corrupt Nevis Island Administration to go its is now.
