D’Aguilar: CCA and Izmirlian should settle down and move on

A former Cabinet minister said China Construction America (CCA) should try to settle with developer Sarkis Izmirlian’s BML Properties following a recent $1.6 billion New York State Supreme Court ruling in favor of BML, because by appealing the case and prolonging it, CCA attracts interest of tens of millions.

Dionisio D’Aguilar, former minister of tourism and aviation under the Dr. Hubert Minnis administration, told reporters he was shocked that CCA, the US business unit of China State Construction Engineering Corporation, was trying to appeal a court ruling of New York that he defrauded. BML Properties and breached an investment agreement. He said it was in Izmirilian’s and CCA’s best interest to focus on a solution.

D’Aguilar said: “It’s strange to me that the CCA would try to appeal this decision. They have been to the New York State Supreme Court twice and been struck down. The judge tried to get both sides to settle before ruling. Interest on the $1.643 billion judgment accrues nine percent per year. That’s about $150 million a year.

“So let’s say you appeal and it takes about two years, that’s another $300 million. Now you’re up to $2 billion, and your New York Supreme Court experience has so far been unsuccessful. So, I would think both sides should get in a room and negotiate a deal and get this over with and everybody move on.”

“The judges decided quite convincingly that CCA was fraudulent in its activity and did not act in the best interests of the company and unfortunately ended up taking Mr. Izmirilian’s property, even though, according to the judge, he operated honorably. and he did what he had to do. So I think CCA and its parent should try to sort this out, bring it to a conclusion.”

It remains to be seen whether this unsightly affair with Izmirilian and CCA over the Baha Mar property would discourage investors from doing business in the Bahamas, D’Aguilar said.

“You always start an investment relationship as if it’s a good marriage, but you have to plan for the divorce, because there may be a divorce, and when you see how our government acted in that divorce, it doesn’t comfort you. So from that perspective, if I look at multiple jurisdictions and I look at what happened here with a large investment and how the government, apparently it was found out, joined the wrong party, the party that was found out. guilty of breach of contract and acting fraudulently, this causes a level of discomfort if you are looking to potentially invest in the Bahamas. So obviously every investor is going to look at every investment differently and come to their own conclusions, but it may cause some to pause.”