APNU/AFC giveaway of land in 2020 largest in Guyana’s history – AG

– says “violent breaches” occurred in APNU/AFC land agreements

Noting that “violent breaches” of land agreements occurred in the dying days of the former APNU/AFC (A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change) Government, Attorney General (AG) Anil Nandlall, SC., has described these land giveaways as the worst in Guyana’s history.
Nandlall was at the time on the ‘One on One’ programme, during which he addressed the land transaction controversies that have been making the rounds. According to the AG, there is no other case in Guyana’s history where so much land was given away for so little, than after the APNU/AFC Government fell to a No Confidence Motion (NCM) in 2019.
“Each of those agreements of sale, spoke to a deposit of 50 per cent upon the signing of the agreement. Less than 10 per cent of the purchase price was received in (most) of the transactions. The balance of the purchase price was supposed to be paid within a prescribed time-frame, stipulated in every agreement, other than two.”

“That time-frame was breached and the balance not paid. And even more egregious, was the fact that in some cases, not a cent was paid. Not a cent. I distinctly remember two transactions of 30 acres each. Not a cent was paid and the title was vested. I want to pause there and ask the population, if they know in Guyana’s history of any bigger giveaway of land than what I just described?” the AG said.
According to Nandlall, the free-handed giveaway of land to persons close to APNU/AFC that he just described was a reference to Ogle alone. However, similar land giveaways happened in Enmore, Providence, Linden and Wales. To compound the issue, Nandlall pointed out that none of these lands were publicly advertised.
“We’re talking about hundreds of thousands of acres of land. This fellow is speaking about transparency and processes… there was no evidence whatsoever in relation to these transactions and all the others to which I’ve made reference, of any process whatsoever, inviting the public to bid for these lands. None. Up to now we do not know and we can’t find any evidence, how these persons knew the land was available.”
Nandlall also made it clear that while Attorney-at-Law and Alliance For Change (AFC) leader Nigel Hughes may try to distance himself from the former coalition Government, he remains irrevocably tied to APNU/AFC politically.
“There’s a constant and very deliberate attempt by (Hughes) to distance himself from that Government. The Alliance For Change was the major coalition partner in that Government. And he is the leader of the Alliance For Change. So that Government is his Government.”

“We were able to put out there, irrefutable evidence of dozens of transactions, entered into by Nigel Hughes’ Government, in relation to land transactions, at that very location, in proximity to ExxonMobil. And we were able to establish that the $30 million per acre purchase price was the one that his Government determined.”
Recently, Hughes has come in for heavy criticisms after calling for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government to halt all land deals amid allegations of corruption at the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) in the Housing and Water Ministry.
But after being exposed, Hughes had subsequently admitted via social media to purchasing 50 acres of land on the left bank of the Essequibo River and below the mouth of the Groete Creek from an individual named Simon Munroe.
Despite the records showing that the provisional lease was granted to him on October 24, 2019 during that caretaker period, Hughes had maintained that he did nothing wrong. Meanwhile, there had also been reports of other instances whereby Hughes represented clients to purchase state lands at low costs.
For instance, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had revealed that just before the March 2020 elections but after the No-Confidence Motion, Hughes’s client – a Trinidadian company – had secured 25 acres of land at Ogle, East Coast Demerara (ECD), from the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) at $26 million per acre. At the time, other lands in the area were being sold at $30 million per acre.
Additionally, the Vice President revealed that the same Trinidadian company had also secured another 10 acres of land at $10 million per acre at Earl’s Court, La Bonne Intention (LBI), ECD – a transaction for which Hughes was listed as the Company Secretary and a Director.
Hughes explained that his law firm – Hughes, Fields and Stoby – acts as the local registered office for overseas based clients that are establishing businesses in Guyana and also offers corporate secretarial services.