THE PRIVATE Sector Commission (PSC) and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) has called for a speedup in the processing of certain documents which would allow the completion of the Movie Towne multi-million investment, which is almost one year behind schedule.

At a press conference at the Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara (ECD) location on Tuesday morning, the call was made for the government to roll out the red carpet for investors. Chairman of Movie Towne Derick Chin, who shared the head table with the private sector executives, spoke of millions of dollars in interests which the project has racked up due to cost overrun, as they sat waiting on several aspects of collaboration and the fulfillment of agreements which were made to his company as part of him coming to set up his establishment here.

Chin said that the TT$400 million that was used to invest in Guyana was actually earmarked for an expansion project in Trinidad where Movie Towne is most famous. The head of the company spoke of issues with getting the required power supply to his facility to effectively test machinery and equipment, the commitment by government to do works on a bridge located to the west of the complex, and the construction of a roundabout to avoid traffic congestion on the main public road once the facility opens its doors.

With the exception of the electricity which is still to be supplied, Movie Towne has gone ahead and invested another large sum to fix the road and bridge to the west of the complex, and to also install the round-about on its own. Chin when asked if due to his difficulty in having certain things done in a certain manner he regrets returning home to invest, he said he has had thoughts in his quiet moments and also asked himself on a few occasions if as an investor he made the right decision.

According to the company boss, he wants to go on record as saying that all of his operations in the past, both locally and in Trinidad, have been above board and there is no one who can point fingers and accuse him of being corrupt. He stressed that while Movie Towne is his first venture in this country, he has several other investment initiatives on the cards which will come after the facility opens its doors. He also spoke of the company’s intentions to get involved in sports and its supporting of the local arts industry as part of its corporate responsibilities.

Chairman of the Private Sector Commission Edward Boyer said at the media briefing that the body decided to come out in support of the investor in good faith, as they believe that there ought to be a link between government and investors moving forward, so as to hasten the process and avoid overruns and delays. “He needs the electricity to allow the project to move forward. The power can build, damage or create an investment,” Boyer posited. He went on to state that efforts should be carried out to ensure the investment works.

Chin told the media that at the beginning of the investment he received constant checks and calls from persons within government, but at this point no one calls to see if he is experiencing challenges or needs assistance with anything to ensure the realisation of the project.

On Tuesday the media was given a very short tour of the facility where two of the movie theatres were examined. The Movie Towne was slated to be completed since last year but there were a number of setbacks and while the company admits that weather had some level of impact on the setbacks, so too were the ‘red tapes’ and bureaucracies.