And as for the man the truckers wanted to see – Prime Minister
Dean Barrow told us this evening that the protest in front of his office was
ill-conceived. But more than that, Barrow says the truckers need to go to Luke
Espat for an explanation since its not Luke’s land and contrary to what
Espat told us, Barrow says Espat hasn’t paid for the land.
Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
“He decided that he would proceed to fill the land to which he has
no title, the land that remains in the government of Belize illegally. He was
told stop it. He started, he employed the truckers, the Department of Environment
spoke to him beforehand to say look, unless and until you sought out this business
with government, unless and until you can obtain title to this land, it is not
yours and you cannot proceed to fill it.
Luke Espat is not above the law. Luke Espat is not bigger than the government.
Luke Espat needs to understand that the administration has changed and things
are going to be done differently and properly. He will not hold us to ransom.
The truckers need to speak to Luke Espat to find out from him how it is they
could be asked or given a job to fill land that doesn’t belong to Luke
Espat. So this is an open and shut situation. Unless and until Luke Espat regularizes
the position, obtains legal title to that property, he and whoever is in his
employ will always be stopped from trespassing on the land and acting as though
he is above the law.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
How long then will this standoff remain?
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“I don’t know, that’s up to Luke Espat. He cannot trespass
on government land. He cannot decide that he will develop land that doesn’t
belong to him. That is straight forward, that is self-evident; there will be
no give where government is concerned on that. He either pays the purchase price
and the administration fee or he will never get the land.”
Barrow says government is already considering a proposal to subdivide
the land into residential lots. Luke Espat says his attorneys have already filed
an application in the Supreme Court.
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