By FareezaHaniff
[www.inewsguyana.com] –Alliance For Change (AFC) Executive Member, Dominic Gaskin has made it clear that there is no doubt in his mind that the establishment of the Marriott Hotel will affect the business of the Pegasus Hotel, which is owned by Robert Badal.
Badal is also one of the financiers of the AFC. During the radio programme – ‘Hard Talk’ – which was aired on 90.1 FM on Sunday, June 1, Gaskin said, “I have no doubt that Mr Badal’s business will be affected by Marriott setting up right next to his…clearly Mr Badal’s business will be affected…this doesn’t cloud my vision, it is a fact.
The AFC has been against the establishment of the Marriott from its inception and is on record stating that the Hotel is born out of fraud.
In this regard, Junior Finance Minister, Juan Edghill, who was also a guest on the radio programme, noted that the AFC approached the issue from a bias point of view, given the fact that MrBadal is one of its financiers.
“It is not a secret that the AFC has received financing from a player in the Hotel Industry who sees the Marriott as a threat,” Edghill said.
According to Edghill, the Pegasus Hotel does not have the facilities to meet the needs of ‘high end’ clientele. He explained that the Marriott was built so as to attract a certain crowd and is also tied to the expansion of the CheddiJagan International Airport.
Gaskin on the other hand noted the project is being touted as public/private partnership, when most of the risks are being absorbed by NICIL. He does not believe that the project is a feasible one.
Atlantic Hotel Inc. (AHI) and Republic Bank Ltd announced recently the completion of the financial arrangements for a syndicated borrowing of US$27M in debt financing for AHI.
The principal investors in AHI (Marriott Hotel Guyana project and Entertainment Complex) are the National Industrial and Commercial Investment Limited (NICIL) and British Virgin Island (BVI) registered, ACE Square Investments Ltd. ACE Square Investments Ltd. will acquire 67% of the equity of AHI for US$8M.
