Controversial Definitive Agreement; Lawsuits Abound!!

Michael Ashcroft

The Government of Belize is also bracing for additional court action.  Litigation is pending in respect of the Port of Belize Expansion Project and Cruise Terminal.  On June fifth, the law office of Glenn D. Godfrey and Company also wrote to the Attorney General on behalf of Stake Bank Enterprise.  It concerns the Definitive Agreement with Portico and is written pursuant to Section Three of the Public Authorities Protection Act.  That letter reads, “our client has received approval and certain fiscal incentives from the G.O.B. through the Stake Bank Cruise Docking Facility Development Act, 2014… The G.O.B. has also entered into a Definitive Agreement with our client on the twenty-fifth of August 2017 in which the G.O.B. expressly covenanted to inter alia, support Feinstein and the Company in the effort to successfully construct, operate and maintain the cruise ship docking facility”.  According to Lord Michael Ashcroft, a number of lawsuits are sure to follow in the days ahead.

Lord Michael Ashcroft, Belizean Investor

“There will obviously be a lot of litigation.  You’ve got a letter recently from Stake Bank threatening the government.  You’ve got litigation from Waterloo as to the way that NEAC was fixed and all those have got to come out, they’ve got to be answered, how Portico got that agreement by Contreras.  Royal Caribbean either knew or should have known that this contract was something that they had never seen in any other jurisdiction, but yet, questions weren’t asked.  So a lot to pay for.  This could be sorted out very quickly, but with all the vested interests it’s probably going to go on for some time.”

Isani Cayetano

“Do you believe that in the case of Waterloo that it may have been deliberate, all the obstacles that have been placed in front of it that would not allow for this particular project to be given the green light?”

Michael Ashcroft

“Of course.  And at this stage, I wouldn’t want to give more color to that because all that and what happened will be in the litigation papers in due course. I think there are quite a lot that you probably aren’t aware of or that the people are unaware of yet which will see the light of day as we go down this particular path.”