Tag: governor todd
[slideshow]
Statement of Dr Cem Kinay with respect to the New York Court Judgment.
Istanbul,Turkey 29 March 2012
Lawsuit against Dr Cem Kinay was rejected by Southern District Court of New York yesterday. Some of the Dellis Cay Villa buyers had brought an action in New York against Dr. Cem Kinay, his family and Mandarin Oriental Hotels for claimsrelatingtothefailedDellis Cay project accusing Dr. Kinay siphoning fundsfromtheProjectforpersonal use, and failure to completetheProject. The District Judge in New York ordered ‘The Court is persuaded that TCI is an “available and adequate forum” and that “the balance of private and public interest factors tilts heavily in favor of the alternative forum.” Accordingly,Kinay’s motionto dismisswas granted and the case was closed. Dr Kinay stated ‘I welcome New York Court’s decision, and hope a fair and just decision from the courts in TCI’
Dr. Kinay was creating a luxury island community involving unique designs from some of the world’s leading architects: Kengo Kuma, Zaha Hadid, Piero Lissoni, Shigeru Ban, David Chipperfield, Carl Ettensperger. When completed, the development was to be comprised of luxury villas and residential units located around, and serviced by the world famous Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Construction of the first phase of the Project has commenced in June 2008 and unexpectedly halted on October 2009. Despite the World Economic crisis in 2008, the construction of this billion dollar project was continuing until the political turmoil hit the Turks and Caicos Islands after the publishing of the unredacted Commission of Inquiry report in 2009. On 12th August 2009 on the instruction of UK Ministers, Hon. Governor Whetherell brought into force the Order in Council suspending parts of the Turks and Caicos Islands constitution. The House of Assembly was dissolved and Members’ seats were vacated. Shortly after these events , Dellis Cay’s funder, Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation has pulled its support to the Project and appointed a Receiver, all construction activities had stopped.
Dr Kınay stated ‘We are still trying to open a line of communication with Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation to end the dispute, we are discussing with potential investors opportunities to bring Dellis Cay back on track.’. Dr Kinay adds despite the adverse conditions, he is investing all his time to see the project to come back to life, the only way he believes the interest of all creditors will be served. Dr Kinay and his projects were victims of politics in Turks and Caicos Islands. Dr Kinay confirms this by saying ‘UK Governor Hon. Whetherell has published an unredacted Commission of İnquiry Report which damaged our reputation, and caused our main finance partner, Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust to pull their support from Dellis Cay’. The Supreme Court of Turks and Caicos Islands had found on June 18th, 2009 that the adverse findings made against Dr Kinay were unlawful and that it was unlawful for the Governor to publish those findings. Dr Kinay remembers ‘Only weeks before the publishing of the unredacted Report, the bank was giving us support letters, stating that they have full trust in our management, and our ability to complete the Project, but just after the unredacted Report was published everything has changed.’
Dr Kinay stated that the accusations against him and his companies in the Report are groundless. He added ’ I have never bribed anyone in TCI, or elsewhere. I have offered full cooperation to the Commission of Inquiry, and later to the SIPT. I have provided them with hard evidence of our innocence. All our companies were audited by one of the world’s top audit firm.’
Dr. Kinay’s TCI based court cases continue. He has appealed the decisions of the TCI Supreme Court against his dispute with the Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation, and against the Government of TCI concerning Joe Grant Cay. He is eager to pursue these cases through national, and international courts until all venues are consumed. ‘I have come to TCI at the beginning of 2005. We have provided jobs and business opportunities to hundreds of islanders. I have always appreciated the trust and the love of the local community. I am still very sorry for the loss of jobs and businesses when our project has been halted on October 2009. I hope that the people continue to believe that I will get this project back on track.’ Dr Kinay continued to state that he does hope that the political turmoil that started in 2009 will end with an election and democracy will be back again in TCI. ‘ These political events cost me my company, our purchasers their investments and the people of Turks and Caicos Islands their jobs. I appeal to the new Hon. Governor Todd to support us for us to get Dellis cay back on track, we hope his announcement confirming the return to democracy and to a freely elected government in Turks and Caicos Islands.’
Dr Kinay practiced medicine at the General Hospital of Vienna in Austria. He received his PhD from the University of Vienna Medical School in 1984. In 1987, Magister Oguz Serim and Dr Kinay set up a tour operator by the name of Gulet Touristik, the largest tour operator in Austria. In 1990, They founded the Magic Life Hotels. Magic Life owned and managed luxury properties in Turkey, Greece, Tunisia, Spain, Austria ,Egypt and Bulgaria. In 2004, they sold Magic Life and Gulet Touristik to the German tour operator TUI AG, one of the world’s largest tour operators.
Dr Kinay is widely recognized for his contributions to the travel and Hotel industry, In 1996 he was lauded as Austria’s “Tourism Manager of the Year” and in 1997, as “Man of the Year” and Finally on 2007, he has been honored with “State Medal Of Austria”.
Personifying avant-garde brilliance, Dr. Cem Kinay discussed his passion for life, his unconventional career, and his revolutionary development at Dellis Cay.
The formula seems simple enough. Take a private, tranquil island in one of the most enviable places in the world, add the visionary designs of seven world-renowned architects, and, for good measure, toss in a lavish resort hotel with the immaculate guest services of the Mandarin Oriental Group, the finest luxury hotelier in the world. Like any inspired recipe, the components of the project stand solidly on their own, but in combination, create a stunning masterpiece that will undoubtedly redefine ultra-luxury living in the 21st century. So what is the secret ingredient in uniting porcelain-white beaches, lush vegetation, and the dancing waters of the Caribbean with world-class design and unparalleled service? Enter Dr. Cem Kinay, the man with both the experience and finesse to guide the first design-driven, premium property development company into its chief venture. At the pinnacle of his career, Kinay presented Dellis Cay, a product of his revolutionary visions and history of flawlessly calculated implementation.
Kinay is a man of strong-willed passion. With deep Turkish roots, Kinay grew up with a first-rate education, strong family ties, and the desire to care for others. Noting the respect and admiration on the faces of his loyal team, it is clear to see the values of his youth have remained steadfast. On a crisp, fall morning, Kinay calmly orders an espresso, but as he begins to speak of his history, disregards the steaming cup and talks fervently, inching toward the edge of his chair, his eyes glowing blissfully with nostalgia. He fondly describes his winding career as a series of three individual chapters. “When you look at my career, each 10 to 15 years, I change. My first 10 to 15 years, I was a doctor; the next 10 to 15 years, I made my hospitality career with Magic Life. Now I have started my career with “Dellis Cay” .
Chapter One: The Conscientious Doctor
“I come from a conservative family. My father was in the Turkish army and my mother took care of three good boys,” Kinay says, smiling. Following in his older brother’s footsteps, Kinay went to Vienna to study medicine at the age of 17. “I wanted to be a good doctor, to help people.” It was by a turn of fate that the hospitality business found young Kinay. His roommate in Vienna, an economy student, presented Kinay his first entrepreneurial opportunity, which he accepted wholeheartedly. “It was mostly his idea that in addition to my job as a doctor, I open a small yacht charter with him in the Mediterranean. So, in the last three years of my specification, until three or four o’clock I’d be working in the hospital, then, I went right to the office.”
Kinay quickly realized that, despite his reliable future as a doctor, he preferred the business world. “Firstly, I liked business, and secondly, even as a young doctor, I always needed to have the last word, and [when I came to the office] I was the boss. I liked this role as boss,” he says with a smirk. Although the decision was far from easy, Kinay was able to feel at peace with his first career shift because he was still caring for people. “As a doctor you are taking care of the body, the people, and in hospitality you are taking care of the soul.” With that, after 12 years of studying and practicing medicine, Kinay hung up his scrubs and transformed his after-work hobby into a career that would transform his life, and also shift the hospitality industry at large.
Chapter Two: The Hospitality Pioneer
So, with the combination of a healthy imagination and a little elbow grease, Kinay and his partner turned their small yacht charter into Magic Life, the famous European vacation and hotel company. In less than 10 years, Magic Life exploded into 23 hotels, 22,000 beds, 6,000 employees, and more than 500,000 guests per year. With very little experience in the industry, it was Kinay’s strong education and use of the scientific method that enabled him to systematically build his hospitality empire. From observing other companies’ successes, he noted the significance of individualized service and, most importantly, branding.
“We looked at different hospitality companies in Europe, big companies, and how they do it. Then we said, ‘There are a lot of hotels in the Mediterranean, what can we make different?’” On a trip to the Dominican Republic in 1989, Kinay remembered seeing all-inclusive hotel systems and wondering why they had not made headway in Europe. Thus, the Magic Life brand was born: the first all-inclusive European hotel company.
Revolutionizing European holidays would take more than a solid idea, but would require a flawless execution of the all-inclusive systems adapted for the European client. A student himself, Kinay knew the best way to learn is to have the most qualified teachers. He flew experts into Turkey straight from the source. “This system was very different than the classic hotels in Europe because you are giving 24 hours of service. For months I took guys from the Dominican Republic, had them sit down with our Turkish guys and explain their experiences.” From that point on, Kinay successfully opened hotel after hotel, branching into new countries, all while providing consistent service.
“It turned into simple multiplication, a science,” Kinay says.
Besides earning the respect of the worldwide hospitality industry, Kinay’s success with Magic Life allowed him to bring prosperity to his native Turkey.
“Hospitality is a very good way to communicate your country. Twenty years before, only three million people came to Turkey per year, now it’s 30 million.” In addition to Magic Life, Kinay has created two destination management firms, Vasco Company and Discovery Company, and founded both Gulet Touropa Touristik, a tour operating company, and Turcotel and ML Assets, a chain of eight hotels in Turkey. For his contributions and pioneering in the hospitality industry, Kinay was awarded “Man of the Year” in Austria in 1997 and honored with the State Medal of Austria in 2006.
After 10 years in the industry, having transformed into a tremendously astute businessman, Kinay knew Magic Life simply needed more room to expand. Selling 50 percent of his company shares, Kinay joined efforts with the largest tour company in Europe, Germany-based TUI. Four years later, in 2004, after guiding Magic Life’s continued success, Kinay sold the remainder of his holdings in order to realize his next dream.
“I saw that the hospitality business was changing. You look at your success, but as a businessman, you always need to be looking ahead.”
Chapter Three: The Lord of Luxury
Like a shrewd chess player, Kinay had anticipated his next career move for years. From his experience in the Caribbean, he saw the value of unique locations and was inspired by the numerous islands in the region. “I liked the idea of one hotel concept, one island,” Kinay muses. But aside from his desire to develop unique locations, Kinay knew he needed to harness three major trends: mixed-use properties, mounting interest in design, and growing demand for luxury resorts and residences. Never one to take a break, Kinay chomped at the bit to get started on his next mission. “In 2004 we exited Magic Life, and on the next day started O Property Collection,” he says proudly.
In 2005, Kinay and his business partner, Oguz Serim, founded Dellis Cay with a commitment to innovative design and service. Their goal: to become one of the world’s most desirable premium brands by building a global following. They aim to set a new benchmark for lavish living, dubbed on their website as “the rarest living experience on earth.”
Once the groundwork for Dellis Cay was laid, Kinay wasted no time in finding elite partners to help him realize his dream. With ultra-luxury service at the top of his to-do list, he immediately contacted The Mandarin Oriental Group for management. “One of the main decisions for our business model was that we will not manage. On one side we are design driven, but on the other side, we are service driven and these guys at the Mandarin, they really know their business,” Kinay says of his partnership with the five-star luxury hotel.
Kinay’s vision is so clear for new goal that, even before settling on a location, he contacted the best designers worldwide to work on prototypes for beach houses and villas. With great diligence, he hand-picked an all-star dream team of seven international architects: Shigeru Ban, David Chipperfield, Carl Ettensberger, Zaha Hadid, Kengo Kuma, Piero Lissoni, and Chad Oppenheim. The architects will merge the natural beauty of the island with their individual designs for a unique blend of private residences and villas.
Lissoni, known for his chic, contemporary style, will be spearheading the design for the core Mandarin Oriental Hotel & Residences. “My inspiration was the light,” Lissoni says. “I have tried to have the light going through all the spaces like a blade. The design is sophisticated, but based on simplicity.”
With design and marketing well underway, Kinay worked tirelessly to uncover the perfect location for his first project. For six months, he used helicopters, boats, and a sturdy pair of boots to thoroughly investigate 100 undeveloped properties in the Caribbean. Finally he laid eyes on the 560-acre paradise of Dellis Cay. A pristine island snuggled in the Turks & Caicos archipelago, it is known by locals for its multihued coral reefs, faultless beaches, and dramatic bays. The breathtaking beauty of the island aside, Dellis Cay is also conveniently located just 575 miles south of Miami, 30 miles south of the Bahamas, and 90 miles north of Kinay’s beloved Dominican Republic, perfect for the global jet-setters who will likely represent the core clientele of the prestigious development. Kinay recalls his first time he laid eyes on the island: “I said, ‘That is exactly what we are looking for.’”
Having broken ground in 2008 , Kinay was well on his way to realizing his dream for Dellis Cay, offering an unparalleled oasis that combines the tranquility of natural beauty with cutting-edge contemporary design, and five-star service that eases the soul.
From insightful doctor to ground-shattering hospitality pioneer, no dream seems too distant and no goal too complex for Dr. Cem Kinay. Taking a moment to sip his espresso, now room temperature, he expresses with humble words the emotion he will feel upon the opening of Dellis Cay. “I am not exaggerating, but on that day when the families with their children are playing on the beach and all the people are there, I believe it will be one of my happiest days.” With the recent expansion of his own family, his first son 4 years old, he will be looking at those first families on Dellis Cay as the realization of his revolutionary vision and an attentive scholar. “I am learning to be a father, these are new experiences for me, but I am a good student, so I will be looking to the other fathers now.” As he finally settles back into his chair, Kinay beams with the pleasure of both a new parent and unstoppable hospitality mogul. Than political blow in Turks and Caicos in 2009 and he stopped the construction and his life dream for a while.
Chapter four should be a good one too,he hopes.
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UK DEBT FOR TURKS AND CAICOS
They are a lot of discussions regarding recovery of Joe Grant through SIPT in Turks and Caicos Islands.
Nobody would like to wait the court decisions.
Is it possible to cover the SIPT costs and fundings through recovery of Joe Grant?Is it true or is it only a story to get the people of TCI calm about the costs and fundings of SIPT?
Or is it an international Scandal?
This Cay is one of the less known cays, and its story came up to the attention of the TCIlanders because of bribe allegations in Turks and Caicos. Dr Kinay, What is Joe Grant Cay?
Joe Grant’s Cay is a beautiful but remote, uninhabited 712 acres cay located in a remote section of the archipelago between Middle Caicos and Easy Caicos. It is accessible only by sea. The last time I took a boat to visit it, it took me 2 hours from Providenciales to get there. This Cay has no dock, no road, no electricity, no water neither any form of other infrastructure. It is inhabited like East Caicos. The cay is composed mainly of consolidated rock with the ocean frontages consisting of either sand or “iron shore”. The elevation is low and the shallow water depths at some parts of the island for do not allow visitors to access other areas. These difficulties do not discourage us, as at the end, when properly developed, this Cay is a beauty.
We have bought 200 Acres of this island on June 20, 2008 from the Crown through a transfer of title executed by the former Governor., Hon Richard Tauwaree and 5 months later on November 7, 2008, the former Governor, Hon. Whetherell has executed a Development Agreement with us for the development of the whole island.
What was the role of you in this project?
When I first came to Turks and Caicos Islands in 2005, I had already my development company O Property Collection in Austria. This company is where I, and my partner Oguz Serim offer our development advice to projects. O Property Collection has, from the first days of this project, ,is acting as “developer” bringing its expertise, in construction, sales, marketing. The center of any development is people. Community is very important. My company’s vision is to create design driven projects. God has already placed a beautiful design for Dellis Cay and Joe Grant Cay, it is now up to us, with respect, to treat these beauties with the best architecture and standards there is.
What do you want to develop on this island Joe Grant?
We wanted to develop the island with an environmentally friendly small Hotel and then Homes in the natural surroundings. We have retained top environmental engineers from Florida, and we started immediately the process of Environment Impact Assessment. We designed our project with a high-class architect from italy, and have signed a brand and management Indent with a very famous brand. The most important consideration though is that this will be a low density and green development.
When you first heard of Joe Grant Cay? How did you get involved?
I first got interested in Joe Grant Cay In December 2006 when I was informed that negotiations with some developers for a proposed project on Joe Grant’s Cay had run into difficulties and I was asked whether I could be interested to take this development further. The Government already had a price for sale on the Cay, US$5 million according to a formal offer that the former Government had placed before the previous developers in November 2006. My initial views for the Cay was that it was a remote location, no infrastructure and it involved Crown Land, and that meant the need of a Belonger Partner. I was not familiar with this process as my first investment Dellis Cay, is a private transaction and does not involve any Crown Land.
Did you know any of the previous developers?
I understand from the discussions in the past years that there were a number of developers who wanted to take this Cay prior to my involvement in early 2007. I do not know and have never done any business with the gentleman named at the discussions at the Commission of Inquiry,. whether in relation to Joe Grant’s Cay or otherwise.
Who is you local/belonger partner by Joe Grant?
I was already heavily engaged in our Dellis Cay project, and having regard to the Crown land policy (of which I was then aware), I thought it sensible to have a belonger partner in the development. In that respect, a company called Oceanic Development Ltd owned by Don Gardiner became my partner. I respected Don very much whom I already knew socially. As you may recall he was the President of the Turks and Caicos Islands Tourism Board. I understood that Don was involved in the development prospects of Joe Grant Cay with the previous developers so he was very familiar with it. We have executed a Joint Venture Agreement with Don’s company in January 2007, and became partners in a company called Caicos Platinum Ltd, a company that was the recipient of the first formal offer of US$5 million from the Government back in November 2006.
When did you buy Joe Grant Cay?
See, that has never happened. We did not buy Joe Grant Cay. We bought the freehold of the 200 acres of Joe Grant Cay, and the rest (512 acres) is provided to us by a Conditional Purchase Lease through a development Agreement. I am not sure whether you followed it, but this island was first offered at US$5 million to Caicos Platinum Ltd, when that company was owned by previous developers. Then, 200 Acres of it (approximately 30%) was offered to us at $2 million in early June 2008, by the decision of Cabinet, led by His Excellency the Governor Richard Tauwaree. At the specific instance of the Government (and with some reluctance on our part given the risk to which we were thus being exposed in advance of the conclusion of a development agreement), we were asked to close the purchase of the 200 acres hotel parcel on an urgent basis, apparently because of very low cash flow issues at Government level. Having agreed to do so, the Governor again changed its mind, obtained a new valuation by a third-party QS and informed us on June 19th, 2008 that the price of the hotel parcel had been increased to $3.2 million. We paid that price for 200 Acres and bought a portion of Joe Grant Cay on June 20th, 2008 on de day of Groundbreaking ceremonies of Dellis Cay.Governor Hon. Tauwaree came in the afternoon to this ceremonies,was very happy,that Joe Grant deal was finally closed after 1,5 years of negotiations.He congratulated me on the day,the funds of the transaction was in the account of government.
What about the Development Agreement?
You know, it took us almost 2 years from the first discussions, but 5 months after our acquisition of the 200 Acre parcel, in November 2008 to get a Development Agreement. I am not sure whether you re know but The Governor executes all major agreements on behalf of the Government. So, Governor HE Gordon Wetherell, and our CEO, Director, Michel Neutelings have met for the execution of the Development Agreement.
Dr, Is there anything special in the Agreement?
All development agreements in Turks and Caicos Islands, usually have more or less the same provisions. However, we have an additional obligation on our part to pay 15% on the gross amount on the sale of villa lots in the development to the Crown. I am not privy to all development agreements in TCI but I am not personally aware of any other development agreement which contains an obligation of that nature. From the standpoint of the public, it is clear that if my partners and I make a major investment on Joe Grant’s Cay such that the price which a buyer might pay for a villa lot is greatly enhanced, the Government receives a corresponding benefit without any of the business risks undertaken by the developer. Joe Grant Cay was going to be a new source of income for the TCI Government and TCI islanders. This remote and inhabited island was going to be the home for a new hospitality project providing new jobs and opportunities for everyone. I would imagine that most of the ex Middle Caicos residents would returned to their home from their present endeavors in Providenciales. In summary, this project had a very important social aspect. I have on many occasions discussed these aspects with both Honorable Governors Tauwahare and Whetherel.
There were discussions about the valuation? What you have to say on it?
Look, I am a developer, a businessmen. I got interested in this deal as the 712 Acres was available at US$5 million to a number of developers who apparently did not perform. I wanted to buy at this price. At the end, I have negotiated more than 18 months to get 30% of this cay at US$3.2 million. I took a significant risk by paying that price and closing that purchase without having a signed development agreement with TCIG, with no guarantee that we could carry out our development plan or acquire the rest of the Cay. I trusted to Governor Hon.Tauwahare and later on to Governor Hon.Whetherel.
Now coming to the valuations, I understand from the Inquiry that under the leadership of the HE Governor Tauwaree himself, the Cabinet has sought a number of conflicting valuations both from their own valuation department and from a private commercial appraiser on June 2008. They have as the Cabinet, together with HE the Governor, have decided to take the valuation of the commercial appraiser as it reflected the market value.
Now, the question is why did they not picked the high value but the low value?
My answer is that the valuation of the land is obviously a matter for the Crown and for experts in that field. That is why I have hired some of the leading experts in this field to assist me. What they say is simple: the Valuation officer has attempted to value this property by direct comparison to couple at Ambergris Cay, and sale listings from marketing brochures (and not actual transactions) at North Caicos Marina and Middle Caicos. I am told that those comparable do not come near being appropriate for the purposes of valuing Joe Grant Cay.
At Ambergris Cay, for example, lot sizes of between 0.32 – 1.85 acres each are compared to our project of 700 acres. In addition, Ambergris Cay forms part of an established luxury brand, and considerable expenditure has been undertaken on the extensive infrastructure. I do not know if you know but Ambergis Cay has all its utilities underground, electricity and water, It is the only island in this country which has an underground sewer system. Everything is self-generated on the island, water making, the treatment of the sewer system. It has even an uncompleted marina that is not completed but obviously a port facility) including the inclusion of the biggest private runway (6,000 feet) in the Caribbean. Overall Ambergis Cay it is a self-sufficient island that has all of the amenities and can function, unlike North and Middle Caicos which has to have power on the sea cable from Providenciales. North Caicos Yacht Club is also a developed property, so no parallels to undeveloped land neither. We also understand that the value r has used “sales brochure prices” in 2008. The Middle Caicos comparative is based on a sales listing as well, which was withdrawn from the market after 22 months listing period and not sold.
Now, that is what experts say. These will all come out soon. Now if you ask me what I personally think. To me, the real valuation is what I paid. Our company paid US$18 million to Dellis Cay, a 500 acres island, of which 200 Acre is private land. Dellis Cay is only 20 minutes from Leeward Highway, it had PPC Electricity cable in it, for plenty of electricity, and it is next to world-renowned Parrot Cay. I think that we have paid for the 200 Acres at Joe Grant Cay reflects the fair market price at its present state and that is “undeveloped” land at a remote location for commercial use. That is what it is.
Later on, we have asked both local and international professional valuation firms to conduct a fgull analysis and report an official valuation of this island. All these reports have confirmed the value that we have paid to Joe Grant Cay’s 200 acres and the lease agreements that we have entered with the TCI Government. In any case, after the World Economical Crisis starting in November 2008 and onwards land values have significantly eroded all around the world and especially the Caribbean.
But Dr Kinay what is the benefit of this Project to the TCIslanders? What do they get?
Look,the government did not simply sell a piece of land, they entered into a development agreement for the development of that land. If I can not develop it on time, and spend the money that the Government wants me to spend on it, than they will get back. It is in the Agreement. It is ours as long as we spend money on it. You know how much? My Development Agreement says I need to spend US$120 million on this cay in a fixed period of time. We estimated that the construction will take 2 years and create at least 150 new local jobs. Once the island is fully operational it will require at least 70 locals to manage it. As I have already mentioned, in addition to the purchase price of the land of the hotel site, we will pay 15% of our Villa sales on the 300 Acre Villa Lots and this goes straight to the Government’s budget. Not to mention, the usual development agreement obligations such as the Annual Scholarship payments, duties, work permit fees, the rents paid under the leases, stamp duty benefits accruing to TCIG arising out of sales in the development and the boost to the tourism economy of TCI.
Dr Kinay, you lost a court case concerning Joe Grant Cay June 2011? What will happen now?
I received the Turks and Caicos Islands Court’s judgment in June 2011 concerning Joe Grant Cay. I also received TCIG’s Press Release from July 2011. The judgement is grossly unfair and Joe Grant Cay development companies are currently appealing it. I could not afford lawyers as Turks and Caicos Islands Courts have frozen all my worldwide assets not allowing me to spend any funds towards my right to defend myself and my companies. Looking at the Judgment, in essence, His Hon. Justice G W Martin has concluded in connection with the political donation of $500,000 made by Dellis Cay’s parent company Turks Development LP (the Court states the donation was from ‘Dr Kinay’) to Michael Misick on 9 January 2007, the Judge found (paragraph 33) “there to be a very strong probability that the money was paid as a bribe in order to ensure that the Defendant companies obtained the benefit of the proposed development” disregarding the facts that the Defendant companies did not even exist at that time, and that the donation was made by Turks Development LP, a company developing Dellis Cay, not related in any way to Joe Grant Cay . His Hon Judge further observed (paragraph 41): “I emphasise that this judgment should not be treated as a conclusive finding that any individual has acted corruptly. Nobody should be declared corrupt if he has not had the opportunity to defend himself at trial, and that has not happened in this case.’ These statements did not make the Judgment just and fair, the basic principle of law.
On the matter of Joe Grant Cay’s valuation, His Hon Justice completely ignored the Government’s valuation report obtained from BCQS, an independent commercial appraiser who valued 200 acres of Joe Grant Cay, at USD 3.2 million for commercial use, exactly the amount of money asked by the Government in June 2008, which the development companies have paid in full. His Hon Judge ruled (Para 36, The Judgement) ‘When instructing BCQS to give an alternative valuation, McAllister Hanchell did not tell them of the proposed development, so that their valuation made no allowance for the intended use of the land.’. The Learned Chief Justice has failed to recognize that BCQS valuation report specifically stated on Page 7 Item 3.5 ‘It is assumed that planning permission is available for the subdivision of the land for residential plots or for a commercial use.’ By ignoring BCQS’s clear statement specifying that Joe Grant Cay valuation report is prepared for “commercial use”, The Hon. Chief Justice presented an unbalanced approach for the benefit of the Plaintiff. The Court’s omission of BCQS’s written representations in their valuation report is not something that I can live with and we will be pursuing the reasons for this material error.
First, the Commission of Inquiry’s publication of unredacted Final Report despite the TCI Supreme Court’s Order not to publish the unredacted Final Report cost Dellis Cay its business and caused the funders to pull their finances, now Joe Grant Cay Development companies are striped of their rightfully obtained assets.
It is clear to me that there is a set political agenda which is geared to restructure the political landscape at the Turks and Caicos Islands and we are chosen as the main victims.
I repeat categorically that I reject all accusations, and state that we are innocent
For those who doubt that the Development of Joe Grant Cay is not innocent, I have only one question:
Had the alleged privileges, favors or better conditions been present in the acquisition of 200 acres of this island, or in the Development Agreement, why both Hon. Governor Tauwhare, and the present Hon. Governor Whetherell would have executed these on behalf of the Crown?
Both Hon Governors are experienced public officials, with history of making land transactions, and executing Development Agreements on behalf of the Crown. Why did they approve these transactions if the preferential treatment was all over the documents that they have signed?
All these contracts, and 200 acres land sale were approved by the Attorney General, TCI Invest, Ministers, the Premier, and executed by 2 Hon. Governors. The Government and both Hon. Governors had 2 years to conduct due diligence. Do you really believe that they were all ‘deceived’? and did not know what they were selling? That is the real question the Turks and Caicos Public must ask.
I have faith in the law, and I will look for justice until I find it.
What are your long-term goals in Turks and Caicos Islands?
Now a new Governor is appointed as you know.His Excellency Hon.Todd is a very positive person and has a new approach for TCI.I will explain him following:
I did not come to Turks and Caicos Islands, to do few projects and go back to anywhere. I will stay and work here for many years. When Dellis Cay and Joe Grant Cay will one time open, my children, together with the young generation of Turks and Caicos Islands, will be proud of having these developments, in remote locations and will have fun.TCI er will be proud about it too.
It is also not right,to tell TCI Islander,the government recovered Joe Grant.It is not true.We have still our appeal open and when we will again lose because of the pressure of Attorney General,SIPT,TCI Government etc,we will go to the international courts for this injustice.
God bless TCI.