And while all that is background, the issue in the foreground right
now is how much will Government have to pay those Ashcroft-affiliated companies
for their holdings in BTL. According to releases from Ashcroft, it’s in
the range of 300 million US dollars, but when we spoke to the Prime Minister
yesterday, he was thinking about something more like half of that.
Jules Vasquez,
“Who will determine the value of the asset that he is repaid and who will
determine the terms upon which he is repaid?”
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“The Supreme Court. The Bill provides for claims of compensation to
be made if there is dispute and we know there will be as to the amount of compensation
to be paid. The Supreme Court of this country will make the final.”
Jules Vasquez,
“How much roughly would you say the asset is valued, you must have made
an offhanded guess in your calculations?”
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“Well it depends on whether you take the accommodation agreement into
consideration, naturally from my point of view and the law does say that in
assessing compensation the court cannot take into account any accommodation
agreement that contains provisions that are contrary to law. In a sense that
is self-evident but it perhaps is not as clear as it ought to be since the tribunal
in London clearly didn’t get it. Once you remove the Accommodation agreement,
if the court agrees that that agreement was also void, illegal, contrary to
public policy, I think that compensation becomes more reasonable, the value
of the company becomes something that we would be more readily able to handle.
Perhaps $300 million, $250 million.”
Jules Vasquez,
“Belize or US?”
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“I talk in Belize dollars. It is difficult, I am not an expert, I
am not an accountant, I am not a valuer but I would think $300 million, $400
million that sort of thing.”
Marion Ali, News 5
“And in the interest of the staff of BTL and the customers, can you assure
that the benefits of the staff will remain the same and that the rates will
remain the same for the public?”
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“I would hope that very shortly the rates will be lowered for the
public but remember this will be run as a business.”
The Prime Minister also discussed the US$22 million award given against
government to Ashcroft’s BBC Holdings and the Belize Bank by the London
Court of International Arbitration. Add that to another US$19 million that Telemedia
won against government form that same court and you have $80 plus million. Even
for people who print money – that a lotta cheese, and Prime Minister Barrow
told us he’s duly concerned but feels he is morally on high ground.
Jules Vasquez,
“The LICA had a powerful ruling in terms of financial significance against
your government last week, another US$22 million.”
Hon. Dean Barrow,
“Yeah that is with respect to another settlement deed that the PUP
gave to the Belize Bank under which they were entitled not to pay any taxes
but you will recollect that when they first took that to arbitration, that same
tribunal that has now given them the award gave them an injunction saying that
we have to refrain from collecting our taxes in the meanwhile eventhough it
said that the agreement was legal. The Supreme Court of this country refused
to uphold that injunction and the judge said that in so far as he needed to
form a preliminary opinion on the agreement, it was his preliminary opinion
that it is illegal. That is the basis therefore on which we will resist any
effort to enforce that award in this country that it is void as being against
public policy, that it is illegal because it violates very clearly the tax laws
of this country and the constitution of this country.”
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