Vexed Bermoothes

The revelation that Coco Reef’s lease has now been extended to 120 years is stunning.

The original tender was to operate the Stonington Beach hotel for 21 years.  This was quietly renegotiated into a 50 year lease, and an SDO was later granted to develop 66 “leaseback villas” in several towers on the site.   Now, the lease has been extended to 120 years to make it easier to sell the condos.

The Auditor General criticised Government’s secretive handling of the Stonington lease in 2004, but little appears to have changed.  To add salt to the wounds, from media reports, Government still has not been diligent in recouping some of the money due to it in electricity charges for the facility over the past 7 years.

We have ongoing mission creep.  And not once has the lease gone before the House of Assembly for debate.

This is a failure in governance and in accountability.  And, in my opinion, the appearances are very dodgy.