Hon Walwyn accuses Premier of lying about Ellis Thomas Downs contract
Hon Walwyn response came after he asked the Premier what is the situation surrounding the racetrack, during the question and answer segment of Continuation of the Eighth Sitting of the First Session of the Fifth House of Assembly, on February 20, 2024.
“Could the Premier and Minister of Finance please advise this Honorable House of the current situation with the Ellis Thomas Downs and when was the last time that he met with the landowners to resolve the present dispute? Could he also advise when the people of the Territory could expect to see horse racing back at that location?,” he asked.
According to the Premier, while horse racing is an important element of the cultural fabric and a significant pastime in the VI, Ellis Thomas Downs Horse Track straddles 3 major landowners with one of these parcels owned solely by the Crown and the other two by private individuals.
“Madam Speaker, in 2022 there was a disagreement with one of the landowners. Which ultimately led to the land not being accessible. Madam Speaker as well, it was discovered that the leasing arrangement which had been in place, was not with a legal entity, and therefore the lease was void,” he said.
Potential legal dispute - Premier
Premier added, however, that because the matter has the possibility of being a legal one, he will not comment on the matter, “Madam Speaker, I do not wish to prejudice the situation further, since the matter is currently under active consideration and certainly has the potential to be a legal dispute. So, I certainly wouldn’t you to comment any further than I already have.”
My Walwyn however, accused the Premier of lying about the contract being void as he is familiar with the situation and knows the family, while adding that the question is in the matter of the public interest after members of the public continue to ask when will horse races return to the VI.
“The Premier is now trying to negotiate with the British Government on Major matters, but he can’t negotiate with a benevolent family from Sea Cows Bay to get this Horse Racing situation sorted out? I don’t quite understand that” he added
According to Hon Walwyn, the Thomas family is not unreasonable nor greedy and as such, the matter should be solved and the problem highlighted, “I am not asking just because I’m trying to be malicious, all of us when we go around people are asking when will Horse Racing be returning to the territory. The Premier has to give a better explanation and not this story about the contract being void, that is not true,” he said.
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40 Responses to “Hon Walwyn accuses Premier of lying about Ellis Thomas Downs contract”
Please get in touch with reality! Horse track / horse owners can come together and sort their own affairs without suckling on Government titi nipple! Leave that for us who on minimum wage and close to homelessness!
I must be mad at him for getting a chit load of people paid of that wall? C**dy go sit you unat***ctive beagle face sq**t down.
Moreover, the political development process has declined, moving sideways with poor succession planning..The process is not producing a steady stream of people with the skills, competence, experience, etc, to effectively serve as Premier and ministers. The problem , the deficiency, lie not just with this government but also with previous governments. The territory has slidden backward since the sudden and untimely passing of national hero, former Chief Minister Hamilton Lavity Stoutt. It has devolved into a tragic state of Less, Lessness. The territory needs to hit the reset button and urgently.
It needs to reboot, revamping the planning, organizing, etc effort to reset the compass and get back on track/course. . Can we say our roads, water, sewage, drainage, electricity, ports, healthcare system, education system, economic diversification, labor and immigration, environmental protection and preservation, cost of living, public safety ( police, fire, security), border protection, court system, civil service, etc are at the First World level???? When our phones, iPads, laptops, etc lock up, we have to do a hard reset. So we need to do the same with our governing process, getting out of the current state of Less, Lessness.
Horse racing, the sport of Kings, is an important means of entertainment for the BVI residents. Nevertheless, the VI is riddled also with a myriad of critical issues which should receive the same high passion of being addressed as horse racing.
Nevertheless, as you noted, the VI has a myriad of pressing issues which needs urgent attention. These essential and critical, important, etc issues needs urgent attention, prioritization. Your Less, and Lessness characterization is on point.
When government was using he land and wasn’t paying the family, no one knew and those who knew said nothing. When the government wa paying pittance no one knew and those who knew said nothing, so no the family isn’t greedy.
The government paid several individuals and companies astronomical amounts of money for small projects. Does the public know about these? Probably not, this is one reason why the country dealing with the COI now. Look inside the government…corrupt and you talking about selfishness it’s in there amongst all of you. Oh and what about that money the politicians gonna get paid after was just a few terms in office? Go ahead and tell the public. Search your own conscience girl.
If a number of horse racing fans are inquiring about the situation, then a member of the government is going to intervene and try to get answers for us. We already know about roads, water and electricity. The VIP just need to urgently do what they have to do to give the people of the Virgin Islands satisfaction.
This has affected people who want the races and businesses in many many industries (stores, hotels, boating just to name a mere few. So the Premier is hurting the country and don’t want to accept responsibility and lying.