No hotel on No Man’s Land

Addressing this issue at the post-Cabinet news conference at the Diplomatic Centre in St Ann’s, Rowley asked a reporter, “Do you think we are going to build a hotel on No Man’s Land?” When the reporter said no, the Prime Minister replied, “Good, thank you very much. Tell the rest of the country that.” He said the hotel was being built on Buccoo Estate .

Rowley said peop opposed to the project had been alleging “that the Government took land from this very wealthy company below value and we were probably breaking the law.” “Nothing is further from the truth,” he added .

He said the land on which the hotel was to be built was owned by two companies .

“The Government quite properly, through the relevant authority in all of this, the board, set off the monies owed for the value of those lands,” Rowley said .

He said the value of the lands was established by reputable, independent valuators in TT .

The Prime Minister said the law required the disposal of any assets held under the Central Bank to be done at fair market value and that “is exactly what the Government did.” He was confident his explanation would “put to rest” the notion that “the Government took land worth x and we paid half x for it.”