CoI hears | King leased land not owned by City Hall
Mayor and City Council (M&CC) Town Clerk, Royston King
Mayor and City Council (M&CC) Town Clerk, Royston King

MAYOR and City Council (M&CC) Town Clerk, Royston King has found himself under investigation for the leasing of land not owned by the Council to shipping company, Quick Shipping Inc.

On April 5, 2016, King affixed his signature to an Industrial Wharf Lease Agreement granting the company permission to lease the location at Lot 1 Mudflat Lombard Street, Georgetown. However, this location is owned by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) as was revealed by Justice (ret’d) Cecil Kennard on Monday.
Speaking to matters under investigation at the opening of the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the operations of City Hall being hosted at the Critchlow Labour Collage, Justice Kennard listed: “…the granting of a lease to a shipping company by the Town Clerk which land is being claimed by NICIL.”

Documents shown to this media house stated that the terms of the lease could last for 40 years beginning on the commencement date at the sum of $625,000 yearly. However, upon understanding that the land is owned by NICIL, Quick Shipping Inc. wrote a letter to the NICIL’s Board of Directors on September 6, 2016 in request to lease the wharf and facilities.

Both King and Mayor Patricia Chace-Green are expected to take the stand during the final week of the CoI hearing between October 8 to10. It is also being arranged for others to testify, including representatives from Quick Shipping Inc; NICIL; other individuals and authorities.

At the end of the CoI Justice Kennard will make recommendations to the Local Government Commission after which these will be handed over to the Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan. Justice Kennard emphasised on Monday that the inquiry is a very important matter especially to MCC workers and members of the city of Georgetown, which is why persons with probable evidence to support the inquiry should step forward.

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