Last night we told you all about the bevy of land titles acquired by William Arthur Lindo in the last 5 months of the PUP. It was revealed in the Auditor General's special report on the issuance of national land leases and titles between September 2007 and February of 2008.
As we reported last night that's a total of somewhere in excess of 1,500 acres, around two and a half square miles between October and 2007 and February 2008.
Today Lindo came to our studio, unapologetic and un-repentant; he told us that the government owed him more than those 1500 acres based on land it acquired from him at mile 3 on the western highway in 2002:....
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"I deserve more than that because I had lands before and the government in 2002 compulsorily took away land from me and they said that they did not have money to pay, so an agreement was reached that I would get agricultural land in either the Belize or Cayo district in compensation. Four years passed and I didn't get any land so I complained and towards the end I started making threats; I want my land because you took my land, so give me my land or give me money. They say that they didn't have money, so they will give me land. So I make sure I got my land but I ended up paying and paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for things which I should have gotten not free because they took my land."
Jules Vasquez
"So you are saying that all this land that we see here is compensation?"
William Arthur Lindo, Defend Land holdings
"Not all of them but the big parcels are."
Jules Vasquez
"The big parcels? You mean like…?"
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"Like the 300 acres in Coastal Road or the 300 acres in Franks Eddy, I paid for them but I should not have paid because they took my land and they didn't pay me. You know what they told me 'well you know it's the end of 2007 nearly, we will have elections next year and you will be a target of the UDP, your cousin will have your name all over that we've given you land, so better you pay for it."
Jules Vasquez
"So wait, you are saying that everybody in the PUP knew that they would not be in government in the next year?"
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"Well most people knew that they were going to lose. From 2005 - 2006 that was obvious."
Jules Vasquez
"So but if you were owed this compensation for all these years. Why did you only get it at the tail end of 2007 going into 2008?"
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"I will be quite honest; games we play in politics, this one didn't want; that one didn't want. All kinds of games."
Jules Vasquez
"But you are a PUP in good standing."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"Well not always inside the party, we have difference of opinions. The main difference is which direction should the country of Belize go. That's a big problem. It will always be a big problem."
Jules Vasquez
"It sounds like the main difference is who is Bill Lindo's friend."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"Yes."
Jules Vasquez
"And Florencio Marin was more friendly to you than the preceding minister."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"I will leave that alone. (smiling)"
Jules Vasquez
"But Mr. Lindo I see your daughter Stephanie's name here, Sharon Lindo's name, William Alden Lindo."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"But they are entitled to land, they are Belizeans. At that time PUP was fulfilling its mandate of giving land to Belizeans, that's all."
Jules Vasquez
"It was fulfilling its mandate of sweet deals with PUP's."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"No, but remember the UDP had said before, 8 years before; free land, but this wasn't free, this was paid."
Jules Vasquez
"Free land for small land ownera. You are a wealthy land owner with vast tracts of land, square miles is what you are talking about."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"But they owed me; they would have had to pay me millions more for the one they took at Belizean beach."
Jules Vasquez
"But looking at it aggregationally, Bill. Don't you think its obscene that one person should be given expeditiously so much land?"
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"No, they took my land and they did not compensate. Again they have taken land from me and still no compensation, but this time it won't be land for land it will be money. But you know what's my problem, I am being singled out."
Jules Vasquez
"Why is that?"
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"Because you have 400-odd pages and there are many companies listed in there, but the only company where they list the directors to tell you who are the owners is the one associated with me. There are many others, but nobody's name is listed with no company except where it concerns Bill Lindo. So why is Bill Lindo being singled out? Tell me man."
Jules Vasquez
"Now as regards this South Riders Caye, we see a number of holdings and then we've seen a posting on the internet that South Riders Caye is being sold for US$8.24 million."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"Yea, that's my brother. That land was quite upfront with everybody. I got the land because I knew the PUP was going to lose, I have a 3 million dollars dredge sitting there, we had a contract with the government for creating Belama Phase 4, the contract was finished right around election time and then what are we suppose to do after that?"
Jules Vasquez
"If this caye is being sold for US$8.2 million you stand to benefit and you didn't even pay a fraction, even a 10% of US$8.2 million."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"That is called capital gains and that is not my fault, that's the government's fault because they don't want to see development. If they let the thing develop then there won't be any problem. My plan was with that caye, you will have over 500 people getting jobs, I am not the person that sells things, I develop things, that's my whole life."
Jules Vasquez
"It's called speculation. Its call buying cheap and selling dear."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"No, I was going to spend over $80 million dollars on that project. That's was the plan, but its sitting there. So my brother said look we are not getting anywhere so what to do, I said sell it, I don't care."
Jules Vasquez
"I have always thought of you as a man of the people. But looking at this land is wealth and you are a wealthy man."
William Arthur Lindo, Defend Land holdings
"But I was born in wealth, I am not going to say that I wasn't born in wealth, that has always been a complaint that I born in wealth."
Jules Vasquez
"On your own you have generated quite a bit more in land holdings alone."
William Arthur Lindo, Defend Land holdings
"Well the land holding was people taking advantage of me."
Jules Vasquez
"Looking at this one would certainly conclude that you are a very special Belizean."
William Arthur Lindo, Defend Land holdings
"No."
Jules Vasquez
"In democracy all are equal but you are special."
William Arthur Lindo, Defend Land holdings
"No. You have some people who got 9,000 acres. We could talk about a set that just got 10,000 or 5,000 acres and nobody says nothing. But they will single out Bill Lindo for things that they took from me. If you never took anything then you wouldn't have to give me anything."
Jules Vasquez
"Every piece of land you applied for was approved post haste."
William Arthur Lindo, Defends Land holdings
"That's not true. That's what this is saying but it's not true."
Jules Vasquez
"Everything within 5 days. So you are saying that the special audit report is erroneous."
William Arthur Lindo, Defend Land holdings
"Inaccurate yes and I demand the auditor to face me."
The land which will be part of a future dispute that Lindo speaks about is the Coast Guard headquarters.
And more than just wanting some face off with the Auditor General, Lindo says he can call names which have been omitted from this report.
