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Despite a lengthy explanation from the government as to why it spent $6.9 million to buy a plot of land for a university hospital, the mayor of Belmopan has no idea where the land is. Yesterday, the Minister of Natural Resources spoke out about the controversial purchase, explaining that it was in the best interests of the hospital’s future staff and patients. Hyde said the original land for the University of Belize campus was not ideal and would require a huge investment. The decision to relocate the hospital has been met with numerous criticisms, with many saying the area is prone to flooding. Today, we asked Belmopan Mayor Pablo Cawich if he thought the area was best for building the facility. But he’s not quite sure where the land is.
Belmopan Mayor Pablo Cawich said: “Well, I’m not familiar with the details of the location itself. I only know the things that are said in the news, so I’m personally not sure if that’s the actual location. That’s what the rumors suggest and that’s what the news reports indicate, but I personally haven’t heard that that’s the exact location, so I can’t really comment on that if I’m not 100% sure.”
Reporter: So let’s play devil’s advocate and assume that this is the location they chose. Is it a good location?
Belmopan Mayor Pablo Cawich said: “Well, I’m sure that the committee or the officials who made the decision have considered that area. I personally haven’t done any analysis on anything like that, so it would be premature to comment on something if I haven’t done any analysis.”
According to the government, landowners Annie Zhu and Kenny Zheng initially wanted to buy the 15-acre parcel of land for a high of $9.3 million, but ultimately settled for $6.9 million. But given that the Belmopan City Council recorded the parcel as worth $182,700, how did the landowners come up with that price? That’s why we asked Cawich to comment today.
Belmopan Mayor Pablo Cawich said: “I shared with you a property tax statement that I believe is the same location that you mentioned and based on the statement, what you said is 1009% correct, actually if we use the actual system that manages this data, the system does not provide the date that the valuation was entered, so it is difficult for me to say where that valuation came from without doing any research. Many of the valuations that Belmopan City Council has are from the beginning of Belmopan City Council in 2000. So, it could be a very old valuation and therefore it has the value that you mentioned. Some of the newer surveys give newer or more recent valuations based on today’s date and age. So, it would be premature to comment on the valuations without doing any type of research on them.”
Reporter: So now, last point. As mayor, do you know or have heard of the business owners who own this land? Are they well-known in Belmopan? Are Kenny Zheng and Annie Hsu well-known business people in the Belmopan area?
Belmopan Mayor Pablo Cawich said: “That was the first time I saw those names, so I’m not familiar with them. I haven’t discussed these names with anyone else, so I can’t comment on who they are. I think the address listed on the tax form you shared indicates they are from Corozal, and that’s all the information I have. As I mentioned, I don’t know anything else. I don’t know their age, and I can’t tell you anything else other than their names sound Asian.”
It is noteworthy that the government released this news only a few days after the media began reporting on the matter.
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