A COMMISSION of Enquiry has been launched into land acquisition for the Point Fortin Highway under the People’s Partnership government.
This was announced yesterday by the National Security and Communications Minister Stuart Young at the post-Cabinet media briefing at the Diplomatic Centre, Port of Spain
He said, “How over half a billion dollars, $500 million, could have spent…in the acquisition of land and they are not even near to being nearly completed with the amount of land that needs to be acquired?”
Young said, “After the expenditure of over half a billion dollars there is just under $300 million left to be expended. When the Ministry of Works and NIDCO did an analysis they found that with the re-routing of the highway, lands that were acquired and paid for in some instances, lands that was not yet and paid for in other instances, fell to the wayside and then there was also land to be acquired…had to potential to exceed the $300 million left.”
He said, “For example we found that where there were valuations of land for certain lower amounts a valuation was then done for much higher amounts, and when it came to the acquisition of the land yet again there was an even further increase for the value being paid for those parcels of land.
“We then found some persons were paid significant sums of money, tens of millions of dollars, for the acquisition of lands that were no longer necessary and they now made claims against the State for a further what we deem to be ‘overvaluation’ of the land.”
Young said the Commission will be chaired by former Justice Sebastian Ventour and he will be assisted by commissioner Gregory Delzin. Counsel to the commission will be Reginald Armour SC who will be assisted by junior counsel Vanessa Gopaul and Rishi Dass.
