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A lease agreement granting 21,000 square feet of Monos Island waterfront property to a company co-owned by Senior Counsel Michael Quamina has drawn scrutiny over its timing and terms, according to reporting by the Trinidad Guardian. The Chaguaramas Development Authority sealed the 30-year lease to DDI Property Limited on April 3, 2025—just 25 days before the general election—at a monthly rate of $2,200 plus annual service charges.
The property sits at Turtle Bay on Monos Island’s southern coast, described as a secluded pocket of undeveloped coastal forest accessible primarily by water, with no paved roads, public utilities, or permanent structures. The lease covers 2,038.5 square metres of land at Grand Fond Bay. DDI Property Limited was incorporated on February 21, 2025, with Quamina and businessman Arnin Kirt Ramsey listed as directors, shareholders, and beneficial owners.
Quamina rejected allegations that the deal represented a last-minute pre-election transaction. He told the Guardian that the application process began in June 2023, and an independent valuation by Linden Scott and Associates was conducted in May or June 2024. "Valuation would have been obtained based on a decision to lease. So well before any election," Quamina stated. He also clarified that the lease covers a single surveyed parcel, not the four lots referenced by Land and Legal Affairs Minister Saddam Hoesin in Parliament.
When asked whether securing the lease while serving as chairman of state enterprise Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Limited (TPHL)—a position he held until May 1, 2025—raised concerns under the Integrity in Public Life Act, Quamina denied any breach. He emphasized that he held no simultaneous discussions with the CDA regarding land usage during his TPHL tenure and drew a comparison to obtaining a commercial loan, stating there was no inherent conflict.
Quamina confirmed that no physical development or land clearing has occurred on the property, describing it as remaining in its natural state. He indicated plans to commence development within the five-year timeframe required by the lease covenants. The Guardian reported that further questions sent to Minister Hoesin and the current CDA board remained unanswered at publication time.
The lease transaction became public during an October 24 parliamentary meeting of the Standing Finance Committee, when Minister Hoesin raised it in response to questions from Port-of-Spain North/St Ann’s West MP Stuart Young about budget allocations to Palo Seco Agricultural Enterprises Limited. Young had referenced earlier lease approvals executed under the United National Congress-led People’s Partnership administration between 2010 and 2015, prompting Hoesin to counter with allegations about the 2025 transaction.
This story reflects ongoing governance and transparency concerns in Trinidad and Tobago regarding public land allocation, state enterprise leadership, and the timing of major transactions relative to electoral cycles—issues that resonate across Caribbean democracies where similar questions about institutional integrity and conflict of interest regularly surface.
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