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Courtney Weatherburne reporting
It's not much to look at - just an old, ramshackle building, but to the Public Service Union members It's their treasured hilltop home and it has been so for almost 20 years.

It's home to the Belmopan Sports Council as well, they just recently expanded their storage area.

But all that changed in early October when the City Council sold the hilltop property for $400,000 to a newly registered company Simplex Design LTD. The owner of the company is Corozal resident Xin Ni.

Dean Flowers, 1st Vice President
"So a Chinese national, or a Taiwan national or Asian national is now able to own prime property in Belmopan, the central of Belmopan. Not a Belizean, an Asian from Corozal."

What has the PSU even more riled up is that the company was registered on October 9th 2018 and the owner Xin Ni, had the land title the next day on the 10th.

Dean Flowers, 1st Vice President
"As you can see the company registered is Simplex Design Company LTD. which within one day was able to acquire a property that we been occupying for 17 years. It's very disappointing that we've reach this state and even more disappointing is the manner in which the transfer was expeditiously undertaken by the hierarchy within the Ministry of Lands."

The PSU says it had arranged a lease agreement in 2001 with the City Council at the time. According to the PSU, throughout the years they had been making their monthly payments up until 2009.

Dareth Obermayer, President, PSU
"The monthly payment had been paid up to December 2009. When we made our payment in January of 2010 of one thousand dollars, that cheque was void by city council. So it was sent back to us without any explanation or any reason as to why it is that they refuse to accept that payment of one thousand dollars."

The PSU says it has the records to show they have paid about $50,000 up until 2009, but the city council has no record of it.

Fayne Nicasio, Secretary General
"From there we decided to ask the cashier for a payment history. We went to valuation to ask for payment history and that's when we saw our file with only the lease agreement in there and no payments in their system nor on our file that we have made any payments from 2001 up to present."

Payment history or not, it is a concerning situation for the PSU. They say the members didn't expect the council to pull the land right from under their feet.

Dean Flowers, 1st Vice President
"PSU has always been negotiating in good faith with the city council and we honestly thought that likewise the mayor, his council and more importantly the city administrator was being truthful and honest and would have continue those good faith discussions."

Well, it seems the council is done discussing with the union, the sale to Simplex Design Company LTD. has been finalized. But the PSU isn't just letting this go, they have filed a caution against the sale and are seeking legal advice on the matter. Today, they made their position clear.

Dareth Obermayer, President, PSU
"We are asking that whatsoever city council had done, that that be revoked and that hiltop property and title be handover to us within a timeframe allotted by the ending of November. Because at no point are we are going to move from where we are under this circumstances knowing fully that we have and invested on this property from the past 17 years and we continue to invest. So at the end of the day we are saying that we want the title of this property and under no other circumstances we are going to be moved from here come hell or high water."

Crowd Clapping

The City council sent out a release this evening saying "Upon reviewing the records, it was noted by the BCC that only four payments totaling $2,000 had been made by the PSU since 2001. On August 31st, 2017, in a meeting with Mayor Khalid Belisle, the PSU was notified that they were in arrears and discussed ways in which to move forward if they planned on purchasing the building. The PSU claims they have made payments totaling between $50,000 and $60,000 since 2001, however no records were found at the BCC, and neither could they provide receipts totaling more than four payments of $500 each." It continues, quote, "in an effort to work with the PSU and maintain a relationship with the union, the BCC was still willing to honor the first right of refusal for purchase despite the breach of contract for nonpayment. It ends by saying "The Belmopan City Council makes it absolutely clear that every effort was made to come to an amicable agreement with the Public Service Union that would be beneficial for all parties involved."

The PUP sided with the PSU's saying in a release "The People's United Party (PUP) condemns the actions of the Government of Belize in dispossessing the Public Service Union (PSU) of a property from right under their nose and in such a back-handed manner. The PUP demands that Government immediately return this property to the PSU. It continues by saying "This action by the Belmopan City Council is not the first time that this UDP Council has taken land from a Belizean organization with intent to sell off to private interests."

We will keep following this story.