Real Estate option,<\/a> was introduced in 2016 following the devastation caused in Petite Savanne, by Tropical Storm Erika the year before.<\/p>\nSkerrit explained that minus the specially-dispensed housing programme, which is being undertaken by developer [Montreal Management Consultants], all of the CBI revenue would go to the State\u2019s Consolidated Fund and would therefore form part of the estimates on the Public Sector Investment Programme.<\/p>\n
However, during an interview on Q-95 Radio in April 2024 Linton raised concerns about the financial regulations and the legitimacy of the CBI-funded Housing initiative.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, at this stage, we are asking about the legality of the so-called housing option that Mr. Skerrit told us he introduced for and [on] behalf of Montreal Management Company some years ago, and through it, significant sums of money has been raised under the Citizenship By Investment Program,\u201d Linton said during a recent interview on Q-95 Radio. \u201cWith this now, let us go back and revisit what actually happened with this housing option.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued, \u201cWe didn\u2019t know about it, it was introduced and sneaked in behind the backs of the people and then we are finding out now that it has never been published as an option.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linton argued that it is not on the government\u2019s website, and it is not in any regulations.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow then is it legal and how does it continue to operate?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are the questions that you ask yourself based on the information that is before us,\u201d he remarked. \u201cSo, let us revisit what has happened with our money, especially through this housing option and how do you explain all the discrepancies that have emerged with the Citizenship By Investment money to the point where in the 7-year period 2016 to 2023 we have an amount of 6.4 billion dollars that cannot be accounted for.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his response, to Linton’s statement, Prime Minister Skerrit who was addressing a press briefing last week said the buildings constructed under the CBI Program belong to the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn regards to the CBI and housing and so forth it does make provisions for these special projects, social housing, including the international airport,\u201d he said. \u201cThe reality is these projects belong to the state.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued, \u201cWhen the homes are built, when the airport is built it is state\u2019s property as opposed to the real estate which will be owned by shareholders, so all of these housing, the hospital, the health centres we built, the international airport we are building are state assets.\u201d<\/p>\n
Skerrit pointed out what was done after Tropical Storm Erika concerning building. For example, the relocation of Petite Savanne was to have a special dispensation.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you have a developer who comes in, he takes the risk in building and he is reimbursed under the Citizenship By Investment Program which would allow you to have the asset that you need, but not expose you to the liabilities to the treasury or any financial exposure or liability,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe don\u2019t have to put any sovereign guarantee.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Prime Minister is confident that Dominica will get an international airport, \u201cand everything that\u2019s in it, all of the lands.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have seen other countries following that model because it has worked for Dominica and Dominicans,\u201d he stated. \u201cWe must not seek to create a feeling that things are not being done right. This is not true at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Skerrit warned against giving the public the impression that these projects are not important or beneficial, \u201cand we should not do them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can have our political battles, we can have our political differences, but there are some things that we have to wrap the flag around and the international airport is one such thing, the Dominica-China Friendship Hospital is one such thing,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"President of the United Workers Party (UWP) Lennox Linton is questioning the legality of the housing component under the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Program. The disclosure by Linton of a 2019-2020 \u201cbudget shortfall\u201d of over $1 billion related to funds…","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":320192,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cbd_carousel_blocks":"[]","footnotes":""},"categories":[286,235,9,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-320190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-governance","category-homepage-carousel","category-news","category-politics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program - Dominica News Online<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program - Dominica News Online\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"President of the United Workers Party (UWP) Lennox Linton is questioning the legality of the housing component under the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Program. The disclosure by Linton of a 2019-2020 \u201cbudget shortfall\u201d of over $1 billion related to funds...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Dominica News Online\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"Malaika\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-04-09T11:00:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"976\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"467\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/838be977f4b17551ad9c04956d985730\"},\"headline\":\"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-09T11:00:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":782,\"commentCount\":24,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Governance\",\"Homepage Carousel\",\"News\",\"Politics\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/\",\"name\":\"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program - Dominica News Online\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-09T11:00:40+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/838be977f4b17551ad9c04956d985730\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg\",\"width\":976,\"height\":467,\"caption\":\"President of the United Workers Party (UWP) Lennox Linton is questioning the legality of the housing component under the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Program. The disclosure by Linton of a 2019-2020 \u201cbudget shortfall\u201d of over $1 billion in relation to funds generated under the CBI program, has resulted in much criticism of Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and rising opposition demands for him to give a proper accounting of monies raised by the CBI program during the 2018-2019 financial year. In an interview on Kairi FM radio on Thursday August 8, 2019, Prime Minister Skerrit revealed that most of the CBI funds during the 2018-2019 financial year were obtained under another component of the CBI programme called the housing option, which he described as Dominica\u2019s premier CBI option at the moment. This option, which is separate from the Economic Diversification Fund (EDF) option and the Real Estate option, was introduced in 2016 following the devastation caused in Petite Savanne, by Tropical Storm Erika the year before. Skerrit explained that without the specially-dispensed housing programme, which is being undertaken by developer [Montreal Management Consultants], all of the CBI revenue would go to the State\u2019s Consolidated Fund and would therefore form part of the estimates on the Public Sector Investment Programme. However, during an interview on Q-95 Radio in April 2024 Linton raised concerns about the financial regulations and the legitimacy of the CBI funded Housing initiative. \u201cSo, at this stage we are asking about the legality of the so-called housing option that Mr. Skerrit told us he introduced for and behalf of Montreal Management Company some years ago and through its significant sums of money has been raised under the Citizenship By Investment Program,\u201d Linton said during a recent interview on Q-95 Radio. \u201cWith this now, let us go back and revisit what actually happened with this housing option.\u201d He continued, \u201cWe didn\u2019t know about it, it was introduced and sneaked in behind the backs of the people and then we are finding out now that it has never been published as an option.\u201d Linton argued that it is not on the government\u2019s website and it is not in any regulations. \u201cHow then is it legal and how does it continue to operate?\u201d he asked. \u201cThese are the questions that you ask yourself based on the information that is before us,\u201d he remarked. \u201cSo, let us revisit what has happened with our money especially through this housing option and how do you explain all the discrepancies that have emerged with the Citizenship By Investment money to the point where in the 7 year period 2016 to 2023 we have an amount of 6.4 billion dollars that cannot be accounted for.\u201d In his response, to Linton's statement Prime Minister Skerrit who was addressing a press briefing last week said the buildings constructed under the CBI Program belong to the state. \u201cIn regards to the CBI and housing and so forth it does make provisions for these special projects, social housing, including the international airport,\u201d he said. \u201cThe reality is these projects belong to the state.\u201d He continued, \u201cWhen the homes are built, when the airport is built it is state\u2019s property as opposed to the real estate which will be owned by shareholders, so all of these housing, the hospital, the health centres we built, the international airport we are building are state assets.\u201d Skerrit pointed out that what was done after Tropical Storm Erika with regards to building, for example the relocation of Petite Savanne was to have a special dispensation. \u201cSo you have a developer who comes in, he takes the risk in building and he is reimbursed under the Citizenship By Investment Program which would allow you to have the asset that you need, but not expose you to the liabilities to the treasury or any financial exposure or liability,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe don\u2019t have to put any sovereign guarantee.\u201d The Prime Minister is confident that Dominica will get an international airport, \u201cand everything that\u2019s in it, all of the lands.\u201d \u201cWe have seen other countries following that model, because it has worked for Dominica and Dominicans,\u201d he stated. \u201cWe must not seek to create a feeling that things are not being done right. This is not true at all.\u201d Skerrit warned that people should not be given the impression that these projects are not important or are not good, \u201cand we should not do them.\u201d Lennox Linton\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/homepage\\\/news\\\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Dominica News Online\",\"description\":\"The most popular news site in the Commonwealth of Dominica\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/838be977f4b17551ad9c04956d985730\",\"name\":\"Admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4b11ff91eab40baceecc540954738e081ab038af9a7180b8c43b4d0fbb743caa?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4b11ff91eab40baceecc540954738e081ab038af9a7180b8c43b4d0fbb743caa?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4b11ff91eab40baceecc540954738e081ab038af9a7180b8c43b4d0fbb743caa?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"Malaika\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/dominicanewsonline.com\\\/news\\\/author\\\/malaika\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program - Dominica News Online","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program - Dominica News Online","og_description":"President of the United Workers Party (UWP) Lennox Linton is questioning the legality of the housing component under the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Program. The disclosure by Linton of a 2019-2020 \u201cbudget shortfall\u201d of over $1 billion related to funds...","og_url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/","og_site_name":"Dominica News Online","article_author":"Malaika","article_published_time":"2024-04-09T11:00:40+00:00","og_image":[{"width":976,"height":467,"url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Admin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/"},"author":{"name":"Admin","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/838be977f4b17551ad9c04956d985730"},"headline":"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program","datePublished":"2024-04-09T11:00:40+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/"},"wordCount":782,"commentCount":24,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg","articleSection":["Governance","Homepage Carousel","News","Politics"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/","url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/","name":"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program - Dominica News Online","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg","datePublished":"2024-04-09T11:00:40+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/838be977f4b17551ad9c04956d985730"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg","width":976,"height":467,"caption":"President of the United Workers Party (UWP) Lennox Linton is questioning the legality of the housing component under the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Program. The disclosure by Linton of a 2019-2020 \u201cbudget shortfall\u201d of over $1 billion in relation to funds generated under the CBI program, has resulted in much criticism of Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and rising opposition demands for him to give a proper accounting of monies raised by the CBI program during the 2018-2019 financial year. In an interview on Kairi FM radio on Thursday August 8, 2019, Prime Minister Skerrit revealed that most of the CBI funds during the 2018-2019 financial year were obtained under another component of the CBI programme called the housing option, which he described as Dominica\u2019s premier CBI option at the moment. This option, which is separate from the Economic Diversification Fund (EDF) option and the Real Estate option, was introduced in 2016 following the devastation caused in Petite Savanne, by Tropical Storm Erika the year before. Skerrit explained that without the specially-dispensed housing programme, which is being undertaken by developer [Montreal Management Consultants], all of the CBI revenue would go to the State\u2019s Consolidated Fund and would therefore form part of the estimates on the Public Sector Investment Programme. However, during an interview on Q-95 Radio in April 2024 Linton raised concerns about the financial regulations and the legitimacy of the CBI funded Housing initiative. \u201cSo, at this stage we are asking about the legality of the so-called housing option that Mr. Skerrit told us he introduced for and behalf of Montreal Management Company some years ago and through its significant sums of money has been raised under the Citizenship By Investment Program,\u201d Linton said during a recent interview on Q-95 Radio. \u201cWith this now, let us go back and revisit what actually happened with this housing option.\u201d He continued, \u201cWe didn\u2019t know about it, it was introduced and sneaked in behind the backs of the people and then we are finding out now that it has never been published as an option.\u201d Linton argued that it is not on the government\u2019s website and it is not in any regulations. \u201cHow then is it legal and how does it continue to operate?\u201d he asked. \u201cThese are the questions that you ask yourself based on the information that is before us,\u201d he remarked. \u201cSo, let us revisit what has happened with our money especially through this housing option and how do you explain all the discrepancies that have emerged with the Citizenship By Investment money to the point where in the 7 year period 2016 to 2023 we have an amount of 6.4 billion dollars that cannot be accounted for.\u201d In his response, to Linton's statement Prime Minister Skerrit who was addressing a press briefing last week said the buildings constructed under the CBI Program belong to the state. \u201cIn regards to the CBI and housing and so forth it does make provisions for these special projects, social housing, including the international airport,\u201d he said. \u201cThe reality is these projects belong to the state.\u201d He continued, \u201cWhen the homes are built, when the airport is built it is state\u2019s property as opposed to the real estate which will be owned by shareholders, so all of these housing, the hospital, the health centres we built, the international airport we are building are state assets.\u201d Skerrit pointed out that what was done after Tropical Storm Erika with regards to building, for example the relocation of Petite Savanne was to have a special dispensation. \u201cSo you have a developer who comes in, he takes the risk in building and he is reimbursed under the Citizenship By Investment Program which would allow you to have the asset that you need, but not expose you to the liabilities to the treasury or any financial exposure or liability,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe don\u2019t have to put any sovereign guarantee.\u201d The Prime Minister is confident that Dominica will get an international airport, \u201cand everything that\u2019s in it, all of the lands.\u201d \u201cWe have seen other countries following that model, because it has worked for Dominica and Dominicans,\u201d he stated. \u201cWe must not seek to create a feeling that things are not being done right. This is not true at all.\u201d Skerrit warned that people should not be given the impression that these projects are not important or are not good, \u201cand we should not do them.\u201d Lennox Linton"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/news\/uwp-president-lennox-linton-questions-legality-of-housing-component-under-cbi-program\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"UWP President Lennox Linton questions legality of housing component under CBI Program"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/","name":"Dominica News Online","description":"The most popular news site in the Commonwealth of Dominica","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/838be977f4b17551ad9c04956d985730","name":"Admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4b11ff91eab40baceecc540954738e081ab038af9a7180b8c43b4d0fbb743caa?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4b11ff91eab40baceecc540954738e081ab038af9a7180b8c43b4d0fbb743caa?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4b11ff91eab40baceecc540954738e081ab038af9a7180b8c43b4d0fbb743caa?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Admin"},"sameAs":["Malaika"],"url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/author\/malaika\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-e1712618185262.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/320190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=320190"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/320190\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":320193,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/320190\/revisions\/320193"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/320192"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=320190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=320190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=320190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Lennox-Linton-File-photo-642x351.jpg\")
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