Transcript of Gangster Premier of Nevis Vance Winkworth Amory Fellow Nevisians, citizens and residents, over the last few weeks, members of the leadership of the Nevis Reformation Party and the supporters of their sister party the St. Kitts Nevis Labour Party, have made certain false and malicious allegations against the Nevis Island Administration, the Nevis Housing and Land Development Corporation and particularly against myself. The allegations flow from an offer by Mr. Delir Akrawi, a citizen of the United States of America who is also an Iraqi National on behalf of Naples Company for General Trading Limited to purchases 9,9 acres of land at potworks estate north of the medical university of the Americans for condominium, tourist development in that parish of Saint James. The offer to the Nevis Housing and Land Development Corporation was considered by the board of directors of the Corporation and accepted for the purchase price of 1.5 Million US dollars. I am not a member of that board. The said offer, was also considered by the cabinet of the Nevis Island Administration and deemed appropriate as it amounted to 150, 875 dollars approximately or 407362 dollars and 72 cents east carib dollars per acre or 9 point, 9 dollars and thirty five cent per square foot, which was well within the price range, for large tracts of developer able land on the Island of Nevis. The matter came to the cabinet of the Nevis Island Administration for consideration, for the development of a project, the alien land and holding island license and the necessary permissions regarding shareholding and directorship of the propose company which would own the land and carry out the development. The project and the application for the licenses were approve by the cabinet as was considered that the project would be beneficial to the people of the Parish of St. James, and all the people of the Island of Nevis as a valuable economic injection both in terms of construction, and in terms of our tourism product and other related activity. I am satisfied that the cabinet dealt with these matters in good faith, and acted properly in order to facilitate some significant economic activity in Nevis. This project would have been recommended, for approval for the Citizenship by investment program and this would be handled by the Federal Government in an effort to promote the economic thrust and the economic development of both St. Kitts and Nevis. Sometime thereafter when the cabinet had met I was advised that the developer Naples Company for General Trading Limited had sent the purchase price of the land to Octagon Consulting Services Limited to be paid in full to the Nevis Housing Land and Development Corporation upon closing of the transaction. My fellow citizens this is a normal practice when foreign developers are dealing with the Government that they use an agent to handle manage their business here on land. Octagon Consultant Services Limited is a company in which my wife and I are shareholders and was formed and incorporated on the 18th day of May 2007 and is an approved registered agent and offshore provider in Nevis, having been so approved by the previously led NRP administration. I was also director of the company. But since I was appointed Premier of Nevis, on the 24th January 2013 I have had no involvement whatsoever in the day to day operations of the company. Since that time Ms. Beryl Seaton, who was a former band officer and who has been employed with the Company as Manager since February 2008, she has run the day to day operations of the Company. My formal resignation as the director of the Company was filed with the Registry of Companies on the 30th day of May 2014 and on that date Ms. Beryl Seaton was appointed director of the company and continues today as director. Octagon Consultants is an offshore provider and register agent and provides services such as Registration of Companies and management of investments for its customers, in this respect, I am aware that Naples Company for General Trading Limited approached Octagon Consulting Services Limited to be its register agent in Nevis and to establish a company to manage its affairs in Nevis. I am further advised, that the purchase price for the land were sent by Naples Company to Octagon Consulting Services to be paid over to Nevis Housing Land and Development Corporation in full when the necessary transfer documents were ready for closing. However, I am not aware that any money was ever paid to Octagon Consulting Services or in their account of Octagon in the St. Kitts and Nevis and Anguilla National Bank Limited. I subsequently heard on radio and in the public domain that St. Kitts and Nevis Anguilla Bank to which the money was sent, had returned the moneys to the sender, how that confidential banking information went from the bank to the radio stations is a matter still to be satisfactorily explained and certainly nothing was communicated by the Bank to Octagon as far as Im aware. The position then is that no money has ever been paid to Octagon and Octagons account has never been credited with any sums concerning this transaction. I am aware that allegations have been made, that I received some or all of the money from that transaction; these allegations are outrageous and completely false. No approach or application was ever made by Octagon Consulting Services Limited to Nevis Island Administration or to the Nevis Housing Land Development Corporation in relation to the purchase of the land on behalf of this investor or anyone else. Octagon has never contracted whether formally or informally by the Nevis Island Administration or the Nevis Housing Land and Development Corporation and was not entitled to any commissions or other payment from the Nevis Island Administration or the Nevis Housing Land and Development Corporation. In my individual capacity, I have never made any approach to any member of cabinet or to any member of the board of directors of the Nevis Housing Land and Development Corporation, regarding the purchase by any foreigner of any land owned by the Nevis Housing Land and Development Corporation or the Crown. My fellow citizens Nevisians, I truly regard that I have even had to make this statement a special time when our people are gathered from the world over in Nevis, enjoying the islands 40th anniversary of Culturama and our first ever homecoming celebration. Sadly the new politics being practice by my opponents of character assassination and personal destruction seems to have taken root in our beloved island, it is time that it stops. My life have been one of quiet and humble service to my people. I have serve this country over the past 40 years as a sportsman, a teacher, banker, permanent secretary, parliamentary representative and for 15 years as Premier of Nevis I have never sort to use my office to enrich myself, rather at every turn, I have sort to serve others. I regard my position as Premier as a sacred trust granted to me by the people of Nevis and nothing could ever cause me to betray that sacred trust. My life of service, my fellow citizens to my people is an open book. I refuse to sit idly by however and allow others thru innuendo and outright lies to tarnish my good name. I have worked too long and too hard in the vineyard of public service to have my character besmirch in such a fashion. My fellow citizens, I make this statement with the utmost seriousness to ashore my fellow Nevisians and all people everywhere that this issue pertains to an agreement the Nevis Island Administration and a potential investor whose proposal had been accepted by NIA, and which would have had a significant investment to assist with the ongoing economic transformation of Nevis for the benefit of the people of Nevis. It appears that there are some who do not want to see investment for economic growth in Nevis, and I think this is the crux of the matter or one of the crooks of the matter which we are dealing with in this matter. My fellow citizens, it is my understanding that while the Prime Minister of the Federation has sort to by his ill-advised statement on the matter sort to vilified the Nevis Island Administration and a senior member of the Administration, quote on quote and to give the impression that the Federation and the Banks of the Federation do no business with citizens of Iraqi, he the Prime Minister is on record as having made a secret visit to Erbil in Iraq to solicit investment for St. Kitts and Nevis and to promote no doubt the St. Kitts and Nevis citizenship by investment program. I am advised that a significant number of Iraqi have been granted citizenship by the citizenship by investment program. It is clear that these Iraqi citizens or nationals would have had to pay or send money from Iraq through their agents whoever they may be to have this citizenship by investment program process commence and completed. In Nevis there have been 5 such passports issued for 2014 already. It is difficult to comprehend, my fellow citizens how the Prime Minister of the Federation could on the one hand seek to embrace and attracted investment and funding from Iraq and Iraqis and at the same time seek to vilified the Nevis Island Government for engaging in a thoroughly legitimate transaction to effect investment to create economic activity from similar Iraqi citizens. I leave you to make your own conclusion in this matter. My fellow citizens, while I regret that our politics have been taken down a path of personal vilification and attack by the Nevis Reformation Party and the leaders of that party and their Labour handlers in Basseterre, I today serve fair warning that I will not tolerate such scandalous and untrue attacks on me or my administration. I have already accordingly instructed my legal team to take all necessary legal action to aggressively redress any attack on my character and the reputation from which ever source it comes. My grandmother in Rawlins use to say who cant hear must feel perhaps now it is high time that those in engage in these malicious attacks to made to feel and understand that their constants vendetta not just against me but against the decent law-abiding citizens of this country would have dire legal consequences for them. I propose to say no more on this matter, for now, but to leave it in the capable hands of my legal team. Fellow citizens, my God bless all of us and may he continue to bless our beloved island. May he touch the hearts of our people so that those bent on wickedness in high places and in low places might turn away from that path and come into a light for a brighter Nevis for all. Thank you for listening to me and I pray that this matter will come to a conclusion, speedily.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 10:41:24 +0000
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