Hosein questioned state land leases in Parliament. He alleged low fees and preferential treatment for certain land recipients.
Minister of Land and Legal Affairs, Saddam Hosein, has questioned the terms of several state land leases, alleging that properties with substantial commercial value were assigned for unusually low fees under the previous administration. Speaking in Parliament, Hosein outlined cases involving land at Tembladora in Chaguaramas, Golconda and the Grand Bazaar area, and said he intended to submit documents concerning the matters to the Attorney General.
Hosein focused first on three parcels of land previously occupied by Alcoa at Tembladora, near the approach to Chaguaramas. He said the leases dated to 1947, 1949 and 1951 and were originally structured around the company’s bauxite transshipment operations, with state revenue linked to the volume of bauxite handled. According to Hosein, Cabinet decisions in 2019 approved the assignment of Alcoa’s interest to PR One Marines Limited as the company prepared to wind up its operations.
Hosein told Parliament that a subsequent request in 2021 sought to transfer the interest to Tembladora Energy Logistics Limited. He identified Howard James Chin Lee and Anne Marie Chin Lee as principals of that company and referred to Howard Chin Lee’s former role as a minister of national security and his position as treasurer of the People’s National Movement at the time. These details and the circumstances surrounding the transfers were presented by Hosein during his parliamentary address.
According to the minister, the leasehold interest in the three parcels was valued at approximately TT$51 million, while the assignment fee was TT$51,000. He also cited annual rents of TT$50, TT$172 and TT$10 for the respective parcels. Hosein further alleged that the company later mortgaged the land for US$19 million, equivalent to about TT$120 million. He questioned why the leases had been altered to remove their connection to bauxite operations and said the arrangements included an option to review the leases for a further 99 years after the remaining term expired.
Hosein said public servants in the Attorney General’s office had raised concerns about the lease arrangements, including whether the fees and rents adequately reflected the properties’ value and permitted uses. He argued that state land should generate revenue for the public and said the file relating to the Tembladora matter had been copied and was ready to be sent to the Attorney General. The parliamentary remarks supplied for this report do not establish whether the concerns raised resulted in any formal finding of wrongdoing.
The minister also cited a separate case involving approximately 20 acres of state land in Golconda, near the highway. He said a three-year licence dated February 14, 2025, had been issued to Rainforest Harvesters, which he identified as a sole trader registered under the name Damian Ling, for an annual rent of TT$200. Hosein also referred to other nearby parcels, including land licensed to HSM Farms Limited for TT$200 annually, land associated with Sun Trinidad Limited for which he said a TT$500 processing fee was paid for a three-year period, and a licence to Shane Delano with an annual rent of TT$400.
In another case, Hosein raised questions about land near the Grand Bazaar that he said had originally been allocated to National Petroleum for a proposed service station. He told Parliament that a Cabinet decision in 2023 rescinded the earlier allocation and returned the land to the state. Hosein then alleged that a lease was executed on April 8, 2025, in favour of businessman Bickram Ramnarine. He also questioned the classification and proposed allocation of land occupied by Ramnarine near the highway, saying he intended to pass the relevant documents to the Attorney General.
Hosein framed the cases as concerns about the management of public property and whether the state received appropriate value from its land holdings. His statements constitute allegations made in Parliament; the material available for this report does not include responses from the individuals or companies named, the previous administration, or independent findings confirming the claims. Any conclusions about the legality of the arrangements would require examination of the leases, Cabinet records, valuations and other relevant documents, alongside responses from the parties concerned.