SANDALS SCANDAL

As Clico and CL Financial shareholders await budget statements on the future of the company’s assets, they’ve shelved initial scepticism and agreed in principle to Government’s proposed Sandals hotel development on their Golden Grove estate in Tobago.

Carlton Reis, representative of Dalco, the largest CLF shareholder, confirmed this after shareholders of both entities met Finance Minister Colm Imbert recently.

Reis, who said he also represents CLF majority shareholder Lawrence Duprey, said shareholders, including United Shareholders Limited (USL), have agreed on the hotel idea after receiving assurances about the return of several CLF companies.
He said the group will shelve previous concerns about the Tobago project on their estate and work with Government.

Clico’s subsidiaries, Occidental Investments Ltd (OIL) and Oceanic Properties Ltd (OPL), own the 600-acre Golden Grove estate, including the sand spit known as No Man’s Land which is at the centre of the Sandals plan. Tobago House of Assembly (THA) chairman Orville London, at last week’s consultation on the Sandals plan, assured that No Man’s Land and Nylon Pool would not be touched.

In May Duprey had said he would fight to keep the estate since he had been speaking with UK-European investors on a proposed $3 billion hotel development.

http://www4.guardian.co.tt/business/2016-09-27/clicoclf-shareholders-deal-likely-land-sandals

Rowley keen even before he was PM
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley approached Jamaican hotel tycoon Gordon “Butch” Stewart to bring the Sandals chain to Tobago before he had won last year’s general election.



Stewart confirmed this in an email interview with the T&T Guardian, noting Rowley approached he and his son Adam when they were here in mid-2015 for a function hosted by the T&T Manufacturers’ Association.

“Adam was a guest speaker at the manufacturing association. A gentleman came up to me and said when I become prime minister I am going to give you a call,” Stewart recalled, noting that man was Rowley.

After winning the 2015 general election, Stewart said he received a call from Rowley.

“He called and he said, ‘look, I would like to have talks with you.’ He (Rowley) told me that he would like to see Tobago take advantage of its natural resources.”

Since then, Stewart said he has had a couple of “good” meetings with the THA and Government ministers.



http://www.guardian.co.tt/news/2016-07-04/750-room-sandals-hotel-tobago-can-be-reality-butch-eyes-no-man%E2%80%99s-land