TTUTC | TurksJournal

The Receivership of Dellis Cay through Unit Trust Cooperation of Trinidad& Tobago

TTUTC is a financial services company (“the Bank”) operating in Trinidad and Tobago. The Bank’s Merchant Banking department undertakes the origination, structuring, marketing and public pricing of public offerings and private placements of equity-related securities as well as debt securities for local and regional corporations, institutions and regional governments.

Despite my attempts to cooperate and assist the Bank to understand the issues surrounding the leak of the unredacted report, and the issues surrounding Turks Development Ltd, which has made the political contribution to the ex-Premier Missick on Jan 2007, and the political risks associated with Turks Ltd, The Bank has changed its position vis-à-vis the Company, its directors, despite a strong letter of comfort that it had provided.

On 27 August 2009, I have met the Bank’s Board in their Board Room, in Trinidad. They asked about the Commission of Inquiry in Turks and Caicos Islands and whether the Bank’s funds were used for political donation. We have responded that the political contribution in question was made on January 2007, well before any relation with the Bank. Furthermore, we have provided a plan and additional security to the TTUTC.

As a result of the Governor’s and Bank’s negligence, we have suffered loss and damage and as result, on 15 October 2009, a Receiver was appointed by the Bank.

To date, $174 million has been spent on Dellis Cay . The development has gone into receivership due largely to the adverse publicity generated by the unlawful publication of the complete (unredacted) version of the final report of the TCI Commission of Inquiry.

I had provided the funding bank, TTUTC a personal guarantee for the entire loan. On 22^nd of January TTUTC has obtained “a worldwide freezing order/mareva with an ancillary disclosure of assets order” from the Supreme Court of Turks and Caicos Islands against me and my partner Oguz Serim. Since that date, proceedings continue. We have filed a counter claim against TTUTC, for the breach of confidentiality that caused our collapse, as their lawyers spread the word that they will put our company in receivership, well before the action was taken by them.

On January 2011, the Court has issued a Mareva Injunction against me and my partner. We have still this injunction.

I have appealed the decision on March 2011. To date the appeal is not heard.More as 10 years are gone without any progress.

Since the receivership of my companies, I could fund my personal expenses, and my legal costs from the proceeds of the sale of my personal house in Miami. The proceeds of the sale were placed in escrow by the order of the Court and I could only use it by the order of the same.
The funds through sale of lots, villas or residences on Dellis Cay NEVER have been wired directly to the accounts of our company. The purchasers paid their installments into accounts of the TTUTC! TTUTC sent the funds after confirmation of their quantity survey to the construction company.
In the last months before receivership TTUTC stopped the wire transfers for progress of the construction works.
Publishing of unredacted report of Inquiry and following negligence of the TTUTC has brought the owner company of Dellis Cay in receivership.
Me, my partner and purchasers of Dellis Cay have lost all of their assets.
All the years after receivership all of our actions to find a solution with TTUTC and to continue with construction of Dellis Cay were without any result.
TTUTC has ignored any contact.
TTUTC has destroyed our and purchasers assets.
12 years after receivership I am appealing for just and progress.
I am calling on Premier Hon. Washington Missick, Deputy Premier EJ Saunders and His Excellency the Governor Nigel Dakin to stop any transaction because of unlawful sale of my property and make me and my partners and purchasers a part of a solution for this development.
I am publishing one of several letters to TTUTC (the last one )

Dr CEM KINAY

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Mr. Nigel Edwards Executive Director TTUTC

RE: DELLIS CAY

Dear Mr. Edwards

I hope that this letter finds you well. We have never met. I am Dr. Cem Kinay, the founder of Turks Ltd, the company that has being developing Mandarin Oriental Dellis Cay at Turks and Caicos Islands until our business ran into difficulties due to the political crisis in the Turks and Caicos Islands back in 2009, some 11 years ago. I believe that the circumstances are very different now and there may be a possibility to continue to the development of my beloved project.

I am contacting you in order to communicate to you that I have investors interested to acquire Dellis Cay and in this regard, I would appreciate if you could provide my investors an opportunity to understand the current conditions for sale for this property that is in your possession.

It has been my effort to save Dellis Cay for many years, and I hope this time my investors can meet your requirements. My aim is to complete Dellis Cay as soon as possible

My investors and I are the best suited people to carry on this development, as we have the knowledge, experience, how to build on that island at affordable budgets. I don’t expect any other party to be able to deliver the same construction quality, speed, and cost within a short time-frame, i.e. 15 months from the commencement of construction once we are all ready to commence Dellis Cay.

I have decided to approach you personally as I believe you can place me at the right direction.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards

Dr Cem Kinay

[slideshow]

Statement of Dr Cem Kinay with respect to the New York Court Judgment.

Istanbul,Turkey 29 March 2012

Lawsuit against Dr Cem Kinay was rejected by Southern District Court of New York yesterday. Some of the Dellis Cay Villa buyers had brought an action in New York against Dr. Cem Kinay, his family and Mandarin Oriental Hotels for claimsrelatingtothefailedDellis Cay project accusing Dr. Kinay siphoning fundsfromtheProjectforpersonal use, and failure to completetheProject. The District Judge in New York ordered ‘The Court is persuaded that TCI is an “available and adequate forum” and that “the balance of private and public interest factors tilts heavily in favor of the alternative forum.” Accordingly,Kinay’s motionto dismisswas granted and the case was closed. Dr Kinay stated ‘I welcome New York Court’s decision, and hope a fair and just decision from the courts in TCI’

Dr. Kinay was creating a luxury island community involving unique designs from some of the world’s leading architects: Kengo Kuma, Zaha Hadid, Piero Lissoni, Shigeru Ban, David Chipperfield, Carl Ettensperger. When completed, the development was to be comprised of luxury villas and residential units located around, and serviced by the world famous Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Construction of the first phase of the Project has commenced in June 2008 and unexpectedly halted on October 2009. Despite the World Economic crisis in 2008, the construction of this billion dollar project was continuing until the political turmoil hit the Turks and Caicos Islands after the publishing of the unredacted Commission of Inquiry report in 2009. On 12th August 2009 on the instruction of UK Ministers, Hon. Governor Whetherell brought into force the Order in Council suspending parts of the Turks and Caicos Islands constitution. The House of Assembly was dissolved and Members’ seats were vacated. Shortly after these events , Dellis Cay’s funder, Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation has pulled its support to the Project and appointed a Receiver, all construction activities had stopped.

Dr Kınay stated ‘We are still trying to open a line of communication with Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation to end the dispute, we are discussing with potential investors opportunities to bring Dellis Cay back on track.’. Dr Kinay adds despite the adverse conditions, he is investing all his time to see the project to come back to life, the only way he believes the interest of all creditors will be served. Dr Kinay and his projects were victims of politics in Turks and Caicos Islands. Dr Kinay confirms this by saying ‘UK Governor Hon. Whetherell has published an unredacted Commission of İnquiry Report which damaged our reputation, and caused our main finance partner, Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust to pull their support from Dellis Cay’. The Supreme Court of Turks and Caicos Islands had found on June 18th, 2009 that the adverse findings made against Dr Kinay were unlawful and that it was unlawful for the Governor to publish those findings. Dr Kinay remembers ‘Only weeks before the publishing of the unredacted Report, the bank was giving us support letters, stating that they have full trust in our management, and our ability to complete the Project, but just after the unredacted Report was published everything has changed.’

Dr Kinay stated that the accusations against him and his companies in the Report are groundless. He added ’ I have never bribed anyone in TCI, or elsewhere. I have offered full cooperation to the Commission of Inquiry, and later to the SIPT. I have provided them with hard evidence of our innocence. All our companies were audited by one of the world’s top audit firm.’

Dr. Kinay’s TCI based court cases continue. He has appealed the decisions of the TCI Supreme Court against his dispute with the Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation, and against the Government of TCI concerning Joe Grant Cay. He is eager to pursue these cases through national, and international courts until all venues are consumed. ‘I have come to TCI at the beginning of 2005. We have provided jobs and business opportunities to hundreds of islanders. I have always appreciated the trust and the love of the local community. I am still very sorry for the loss of jobs and businesses when our project has been halted on October 2009. I hope that the people continue to believe that I will get this project back on track.’ Dr Kinay continued to state that he does hope that the political turmoil that started in 2009 will end with an election and democracy will be back again in TCI. ‘ These political events cost me my company, our purchasers their investments and the people of Turks and Caicos Islands their jobs. I appeal to the new Hon. Governor Todd to support us for us to get Dellis cay back on track, we hope his announcement confirming the return to democracy and to a freely elected government in Turks and Caicos Islands.’

Dr Kinay practiced medicine at the General Hospital of Vienna in Austria. He received his PhD from the University of Vienna Medical School in 1984. In 1987, Magister Oguz Serim and Dr Kinay set up a tour operator by the name of Gulet Touristik, the largest tour operator in Austria. In 1990, They founded the Magic Life Hotels. Magic Life owned and managed luxury properties in Turkey, Greece, Tunisia, Spain, Austria ,Egypt and Bulgaria. In 2004, they sold Magic Life and Gulet Touristik to the German tour operator TUI AG, one of the world’s largest tour operators.

Dr Kinay is widely recognized for his contributions to the travel and Hotel industry, In 1996 he was lauded as Austria’s “Tourism Manager of the Year” and in 1997, as “Man of the Year” and Finally on 2007, he has been honored with “State Medal Of Austria”.