Ogle hotel developer, Caribbean Marketing Enterprises Inc (CMEI), yesterday announced that it would be relinquishing the controversial 21 acres of land that was transferred to it shortly before the March 2 general elections and said that it would reapply and hopes to find favour with the new administration.
“It is these prevailing conditions, coupled with the spirit of cooperation, goodwill and support for the new Guyana Government that we have chosen to relinquish the 21 acres of land …,” Director of CMEI Mike Elliott said in a letter to this newspaper yesterday.
In February of this year and on the heels of general elections, the David Granger-led cabinet approved the agreement for the sale of land at Ogle earmarked for an ambitious CMEI hotels project, and later issued an order for the transfer of the title although the company failed to meet agreed terms, including the submission of records for due diligence and a 50% down payment, a recent review has found.
As a result, Attorney General Anil Nandlall has said that police would be asked to investigate the sale for possible criminal conduct and he called on the company to return the land to the state and reapply by sending an expression of interest. The land, some 21.096 acres previously used for cane cultivation, was formerly owned by GuySuCo but subsequently vested in the government holding company, the National Industrial & Commercial Investments Ltd (NICIL) through the Special Purpose Unit set up to dispose of the sugar company’s assets.
A recent internal review carried out by NICIL has since found that neither the government company nor CMEI fulfilled crucial obligations before, during, and after the execution of the sale agreement.
According to a project review undertaken by NICIL, the agreed sale price was listed as $632,880,000 but the company has only paid a paltry $20,845,000 and is still to submit a number of documents that should have determined criteria for approval. A down payment of 50% was due to be made, but as at June 15, after the title was issued to the company, only $20,845,000 had been paid.
Elliott, who is also Chief Executive Officer of the United States ERES Capital LLC, the full-service investment and development division of Energy Real Estate Solutions LLC (ERES), said that the company will reapply to execute its projects here and is committed to working with the current government.
No mention was made of why the company never paid the monies according to the terms of agreement. Guyana’s Attorney General responded to the announcement saying that he hopes that other investors follow suit, as the decision of CMEI was what the government wanted so as to begin a new and transparent investment process.
“As we said, we are inviting all the persons who got lands under these questionable circumstances. And once they reapply and their documents are examined, their projects are examined, and they are found to have the capacity to execute those projects, then their application will be favourably considered,” Nandlall told Stabroek News yesterday.
“We would like to have genuine investment that will create jobs and will contribute to the general development of the country, that is the bottom line,” he added. Elliott said that the investment group became interested in Guyana with the recommendations of the owners of the Hilton and Marriott Hotels, as his company works with both hotels in the hospitality sector in the Caribbean and North and South America.
It is to this end that he explained why in 2016 a group of investors that formed CMEI, Guyanese Edmon Braithwaite and US businessmen Ray Murphy, Roy Claus, and Gary Gilbert, sought to engage the then APNU+AFC government hoping to purchase Guyana’s Marriott Hotel. But their offer was turned down by the David Granger administration and two years after the investment group reached out to NICIL with another investment proposal. “In mid-2018 we approached NICIL in relation to the acquisition of real estate in the Ogle area, as this was in close proximity to one of our major clients.” He said that it was a very lengthy and although sometimes frustrating, it was transparent but they had their “fair share” of frustrations coupled with ongoing costs and redundant paperwork.
The group pressed on and were able to complete the acquisition of the lands. “Notwithstanding these issues, we were finally able to complete the acquisition of 21 acres in the Ogle area. The conclusion of this process was timed with the post-elections delay in Guyana and the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide,” Elliott said. “These combined conditions have placed us in a very unfamiliar and uncomfortable position,” he added. He said the decision was taken by the group to relinquish and collect the sums paid as it understands that the current government has the interest of its people at heart. “These actions are based on our recognition that the Government of Guyana has the best interests of the Guyanese people at heart.”
“As US nationals, some with Guyanese heritage, we are confident on the way forward and believe that our multinational team and associated partners can be a world-class partner for Guyana,” he said. “We have committed to support the government as they embark on the journey to develop Guyana and improve the lives of the people. As this new process unfolds ERES/CMEI would like to have discussions with the government regarding our development plans, services and investment and the way forward,” he declared.
