THE government has described as false, an article in the Stabroek News on Wednesday which said that a decision was taken at Cabinet on Tuesday to have Attorney-General Basil Williams prepare a report to explain the compulsory acquisition of two plots of land at Carmichael and Middle Streets belonging to High Commissioner to Canada Clarissa Riehl and the Beharry Group of Companies.“It is highly erroneous, false and mischievous, no such decision was taken at Cabinet. The matter was not even discussed,” Williams told the Guyana Chronicle on Wednesday. Noting that the article in the privately-owned Stabroek News is a “total fabrication,” Williams said too he was not even at Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, but was able to confirm that the matter was not an agenda issue and never came up for discussion. The Guyana Chronicle was also able to independently ascertain from three other Cabinet members that the matter was never discussed.
Cleared by Parliament
Williams maintained that this matter was fully ventilated at the level of Cabinet months before and was also a subject of scrutiny in Parliament during this year’s budget when the sums proposed for the acquisition of the lands had come up under his ministry’s estimates. “I do not know what report Cabinet will now ask for, when Cabinet, the Ministry of Finance and the Parliament have all dealt with this issue,” Williams said. Williams had told a news conference last week that the move to acquire the two plots of privately-owned lands for public purposes was actually initiated by the former PPP/C administration which is now decrying the decision. Government recently issued the order to acquire the east quarter of Lot 92 Middle and Carmichael Streets under The Acquisition of Lands for Public Purposes Act. The Official Gazette of September 24, described the lands as follows: “East quarter of Lot numbered 92 …Middle and Carmichael Streets …with all the buildings and erections thereon, save and except the building and erections situate on sub-lot lettered ‘A’  part of the said quarter lot the property of Patrick L. O’Dowd, and save and except the said sub-lot `A’ as shown and defined on a plan by Sugreen A. Nehaul, Sworn Land Surveyor, dated 19th June 1947, and deposited in Deeds Registry on 26th June, 1947, transported to the said Patrick L. O’ Dowd on 23rd May, 1960 – No.910.”
Since then, former Minister of Legal Affairs under the PPP, Anil Nandlall, has decried the move, stating that it has “sent chills down the spine of right-thinking Guyanese, especially property owners.” The former AG reasoned that because of the “obvious, draconian nature” of this power to acquire land this way, and the sanctity accorded to private property, it is a power that is used on the rarest of occasions and in the most exceptional of circumstances. “It is always an option of last resort,” he said.
Nandlall went on to suggest that Government should not acquire these lands via the “compulsory acquisition” mechanism, but that they should utilise one of the numerous Government buildings and empty plots of State lands scattered all across the city.
Inherited
Williams on Wednesday again insisted that this was a move initiated by the PPP during its time in office. “The nation should know that when we [APNU+AFC] entered Government, I inherited that proposal by the PPP to acquire those said lots. And the staff that I inherited recommended those lots.”
The AG explained that when he entered office, he began making attempts to establish a permanent law reform commission and a law-review unit, but that the current premises could not accommodate those units. As such, he opted to rent a building to house those units, and expressions of interest for that rental had been received. Subsequently however, he was made aware that attempts had already been made by the former Government to acquire the plots. “So the issue of the compulsory acquisition was something inherited from the PPP. So perhaps the problem Mr Nandlall has is that he didn’t get to do the transaction,” Minister Williams said.
He recalled too that Nandlall had raised the issue in the National Assembly during consideration of the budget and he (Williams) had responded, saying that the evaluation was done by the Chief Evaluation Officer of the Government. The project was then approved by the Ministry of Finance and Cabinet, after which it was passed and approved by the National Assembly. Williams said too that if the PPP had remained in office, they would have paid $560M more than the current government for the same two plots of land. “He [Nandlall] indicated to me that those two small plots are worth $600M. So in telling me that, my impression is that if he had been able to do that transaction, then it would have cost the government $600M when it is costing us $40M — $20M per lot,” the AG said. Nandlall has since denied ever telling Williams these things.
Legal action
Stabroek News also reported that the Beharry Group has retained an attorney to deal with the issue and hinted at possible legal action. Williams said that he is not sure on what grounds the owners of the lands are going to challenge the decision. He said the legal action taken by government is called compulsory acquisition and unless there is evidence of a breach in procedures, he does not see on what grounds the decisions would be challenged. Williams reminded the Chronicle that the PPP during its term in office had compulsorily acquired several lands, including a large portion on Water Street to facilitate vending. Williams also revealed that a charitable organisation, the Berbice Bharati Saywa Sangha, which operates senior citizens homes in Berbice, had their lands compulsorily acquired by the PPP/C administration in 2000. He said that the former administration had acquired the lands to construct the University of Guyana Tain Campus.