And switching gears now - tonight we continue to investigate Government's purchase of the 15 acres of land outside Belmopan for the University Hospital.
As has been widely reported, GOB paid 6.9 million taxpayer dollars for the property.
We've already asked if it was worth it. Tonight we asked if taxpayers got value for money. Here's what Jules Vasquez found out:
The two parcels - 5624 and 11214 - amount to just under 15 acres.
They are low lying and what would be called bush - and even though they adjoin the highway - the property sits on a steep Curve- which is also a hazard.
Private valuer Troy Smith - hired by the property owners since 2018 - Kenny Zheng and Annie Zhu valued one parcel at 4.5 million dollars, and the other at 4.8 million dollars - for a total of 9.2 million dollars.
The government's valuer, Commissioner of Lands Talbert Blackett valued one parcel at 2.9 million dollars, the other at 3.1 million dollars - for a total of 6 million dollars and boasted the final purchase price was, "a figure much less than what the landowners were requesting."
That price is 6.9 million dollars - which works out to 460 thousand dollars per acre.
For comparison, the Belmopan City Council values one of the properties at169,000 thousand dollars and the other at 182,700 dollars - for a total of 351,000 dollars - 5%, or 1/20th of the sale price government paid.
But while the valuers say one thing - what would it fetch on the open market? One realtor in Belmopan showed us this 28 acre parcel just across the highway - also owned by Asians. It is valued at 4.2 million dollars or about 150,000 dollars per acre. It's also on higher ground, and is not near to sewage ponds. He told us governments price per acre is quote,"very high".
Another realtor in the Capital told us government's land is quote, "over priced by far".
Land rights activist and part time realtor Nigel Petillo today announced that he's planning a protest of the land purchase on Friday morning in Belmopan in fort of the Prime Minister's office.
