On last Week Wednesday's newscast, we showed you the comments from Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington who initiated the move by Government to acquire private land in Cotton Tree Village for his constituents. Elrington will get 60 lots for his division, and the other UDP divisions in the city will share up the other 180 parcels for their constituents.
In that interview, he claimed that this land wasn't really inside Cotton Tree itself, it was across the road from the village.
Well, the case that the Cotton Tree Village Council launched to block the Government from going through with their plans went back before the Supreme Court today, and we asked the attorney representing the Village about the private acquisition and the location. He told us that his clients still have an arguable case, and he explained why:
Reporter
"What can you tell us about the comments made by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington because he say that the 240 lots in question are not part of the Cotton Tree Village?"
Andrew Marshalleck - Attorney for Cotton Tree Village Council
"He is really between a rock and a hard place because the law says that you must consult with the village council to deal with any lands in the village and there has clearly been absolutely no consultation he can point to then his only other choice is to say is that the land isn't in the village, so it's not surprising."
Aaron Humes, reporter
"He also says that its privately owned that they approached this business man Mr. Tseng to buy the land from him, not from the council per say, even though..."
Andrew Marshalleck
"You do appreciate the contradiction is what you just said because you said the land is privately owned, but it can't still be privately owned if they bought it from the private person with public money."
Aaron Humes, reporter
"Well he owned it before..."
Andrew Marshalleck
"It doesn't matter who owned it back then, it's who owns it now and if the government owns it now, it is public lands. If it was that Mr. Elrington wanted to do a private development he should have taken money out of his own pocket and give his friend Mr. Tseng and then he could have done with the land exactly as he pleased."
The full hearing for this case is scheduled for September 15.
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