The Minister of Finance, Hon. Colm Imbert, MP, has taken note of an uninformed editorial in today’s Express (August 12, 2022) which incorrectly claims that the Government has “short-circuited” the land acquisition process for the construction of the new airport terminal building in Tobago because the matter was before the court.
However, nothing could be further from the truth and in fact, the Government has painstakingly sought to negotiate compensation with the occupants for the acquisition of these particular lands for the last three (3) years without any resolution. It should be noted that in several instances, these lands were already acquired and paid for by the State many years ago. It should be emphasised that the total compensation being offered to the occupants of the lands is significantly more than is required under the Land Acquisition Act and the Government has raised the sum of $300 million for land acquisition for the new airport terminal in Tobago, of which over $200 million has already been paid to over 100 owners and/or occupants of lands required for the project.