Was El Celaso Road Part of the 2020 Belama Land Grab?

On Thursday, we told you about El Celaso Lane in Belama Phase Three, a street residents thought would finally be opened for public use. Politicians from both major parties had promised that the overgrown, inaccessible road would be cleared. But it turns out that land has been privately owned since 2020. So, how did this happen? News Five’s Britney Gordon takes a closer look.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

Back in 2020, when the P.U.P. took office, government froze land payments amid claims that the U.D.P. was handing out parcels to voters. Hundreds of lots were later reclaimed, including some in Belama. But now residents are asking, was every piece returned? Turns out El Celaso Lane, a road that’s been blocked for years, has been privately owned since 2020. So, was it part of that land grab? We put the question to former U.D.P. Freetown standard bearer Orson Elrington.

 

Britney Gordon

“Is there a possibility that this land was included in those that were given out prior to the elections?”

 

On the Phone: Orson Elrington, Former U.D.P. Standard Bearer, Freetown

“It could be. I dunno, it could be I don’t know. I don’t know. That is a decision for the Ministry of Lands. But I can tell you definitively. What we can put on record is for sure that we absolutely tried our best to try to find parcels of land for, of course, parcels of land in ity are very hard to come by, so wherever it is that we found that there were available parcels of land, we tried to ensure that persons first time land owners had the opportunity to get parcels.”

 

 

 

Several residents claim that the U.D.P. campaigners, including Elrington, had assured them that opening the road would be a priority. He says he can’t recall whether that parcel was among those sold in 2020, but insists his focus has always been on helping first-time landowners secure their titles.

 

 

 

 

Britney Gordon

“You promised some of them that would’ve been a goal for you to open up.”

 

On the Phone: Orson Elrington

“I don’t recall that, and I don’t make any promises that I don’t intend to keep, so I wouldn’t be able to say yes or no to that. If it’s something people wanted, then we definitely would be able to lobby. But the question of whether or not something is open as a lane or not that I can’t say it at all. I know that was not a major thing for me. I was always interested in getting people parcels of land.”

 

 

 

In 2021, the P.U.P. administration launched an investigation into whether the right protocols were followed for the sale of land parcels under the U.D.P. Albert Vaughn, P.U.P. chairperson of Freetown, was a city councilor at the time. He says, to the best of his memory, the sale of El Celaso Lane never went through the full process. If that’s true, then why hasn’t the land been returned? That’s exactly what we asked him.

 

 

 

Britney Gordon

“If the process was not followed then is it necessary that the petition even be considered? Isn’t it a matter of just saying the process was not followed, the land must be returned?”

 

Albert Vaughn, Chairperson, P.U.P. Freetown

“Those are my view. I don’t know. And so we would need to take the petition and actually look at how we could best address this. I don’t know. I am saying to you as a city counselor, if I’ve never come to the desk, this is my area. So had it come to the city council, I would’ve been the first one to stand up and say, Nope. Object. We do have problem with that, right? But in my view from 2018, that has not come, and this happened 2020. So we were at the city council. There was a UDP, central government, but the process is that it has to come to council for a no objection. In my view, that have not happened.”

 

 

Elrington maintains that he does not recall whether El Celaso Lane was a part sold with his assistance, stating that it would have to be processed by the Ministry of Natural Resources. We reached out to former Deputy Prime Minister Hugo Patt for a comment but did not receive a response.

 

Britney Gordon

“The sale happened just before the 2020 elections. So that would’ve been under the UDP administration. Do you recall these lands going up for sale in that area?

 

 

 

On the Phone: Orson Elrington

“That’s not, that doesn’t, we don’t have anything to do with sale. Sale or not goes through the Ministry of Natural Resources. As it is right there, it is marshland. It is as I would believe it is a reserve and only the only person that can de-reserve areas of land is the minister of lands. That is the only person who has the authority to de-reserve areas of land in Belize.”

 

 

 

Elrington added that, in his view, first-time landowners should always have the chance to buy land when it becomes available. But that raises the big question, were these parcels sold through the proper process, and did they really go to first-time buyers?

 

On the Phone: Orson Elrington

“While it is, I understand that persons would want it to be more convenient, I believe, my personal belief is that wherever there is an opportunity for first time land owners to get a parcel of land, I will always be in support of where there is a move for individuals to be able to receive parcels of land.”

 

Residents of the community are calling on the government to re-purchase the land and open the road they have been promised for years. Britney Gordon for News Five.