Trinidad and Tobago’s Office of Procurement Regulation (OPR) has opened a formal investigation into state-owned enterprise LandmarkTT Properties Limited over potential violations of public procurement law tied to a $100 million residential development project in Corinth, San Fernando. The probe was triggered by formal complaints alleging the company bypassed mandatory open competitive bidding for the Allamby Residential Development, instead awarding contracts through an unapproved selective tendering process.
In an official correspondence dated April 20 addressed to LandmarkTT, the OPR outlined core concerns over both procedural compliance and public accountability for taxpayer funds. Regulators confirmed they have been unable to locate any legally required public disclosures detailing the contract award, including the identity of the winning bidder and the final contracted value. Under Section 36(1) of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act, all public bodies are mandated to publish this information promptly to uphold transparency and accountability for public spending.
The OPR also reminded LandmarkTT that any procurement conducted outside the legal framework can be ruled void and illegal under Section 6(1) of the act. While selective tendering is permitted for narrow, specific circumstances, OPR chair Beverley Khan emphasized that LandmarkTT must provide clear, documented justification for why open bidding was deemed inappropriate for this multimillion-dollar project.
The regulator ordered LandmarkTT CEO Nischall Shane Poona to submit all relevant procurement records within seven working days, setting a compliance deadline of April 29. OPR officials confirmed late yesterday that LandmarkTT met the deadline, and all submitted documents are now under active review. At this stage of the investigation, the agency declined to issue any further comment to preserve the probe’s integrity. The OPR additionally requested a full roster of all contracts and framework agreements LandmarkTT has entered into since its establishment earlier this year, along with a formal explanation for the failure to publish required contract award notices. The agency also issued a statutory warning that non-compliance with its information requests, without reasonable cause, constitutes a criminal offense under the act that carries a maximum fine of TT$100,000 on summary conviction.
LandmarkTT was launched earlier in 2026 as a special-purpose vehicle under the Ministry of Land and Legal Affairs, created to pilot a new public-private partnership model for delivering high-quality, unsubsidized housing across the country. A February 2026 ceremony saw Minister of Land and Legal Affairs Saddam Hosein preside over the swearing-in of the company’s inaugural board of directors. Multiple attempts by the *Express* to secure comment from Minister Hosein on Wednesday evening went unanswered.
This investigation marks the second high-profile procurement probe into Trinidad and Tobago’s housing sector in as many weeks. In mid-April, the OPR ordered the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) to suspend the award of TT$3.4 billion in housing contracts pending a full compliance review of their procurement processes. That enquiry was launched after concerns were raised by People’s National Movement (PNM) MP Camille Robinson-Regis, followed by a formal call for investigation from MP and former prime minister Stuart Young.
In an official statement released following that order, the OPR confirmed the halt to the HDC contracts, noting that the review was launched to verify full compliance with the 2015 Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act (as amended) and its associated regulations, handbooks, and guidelines. The action was taken under the OPR’s statutory powers laid out in Sections 14(1)(a), (c) and (d) of the act. Like the current LandmarkTT probe, the OPR declined further comment at that stage to protect the integrity of the ongoing enquiry, with the statement officially signed by Chair Beverley Khan.