The Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) has embarked on the relocation of several Broad Street, Georgetown, squatters who have been the subject of a High Court legal battle for many years after they refused to remove from a local businessman’s land.
Some of the squatters during a discussion with CHPA officials
On Saturday, some 20 squatting families from Broad Street were selected for relocation to Prospect on the East Bank of Demerara (EBD).
Through collaboration with the Food for the Poor, the families were identified to benefit from houses which will be constructed and given to them. Among the beneficiaries are five families who were affected when a fire gutted several living quarters earlier this month.
Junior Communities Minister with responsibility for Housing, Valerie Adams-Yearwood explained that the other families will be relocated to Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara. However, she added that roads are still to be built in the areas which were allocated for the squatters – both at Prospect and Cummings Lodge.
“We will relocate 20 families to Prospect because we’re constructing jointly with Food for the Poor, 72 houses. The remaining families will be relocated to Cummings Lodge.We have just received the approval from Cabinet to go ahead with the development at Cummings Lodge. We have to do the land clearing and put in the roads, drains, water and light,” said Adams-Yearwood. While Adams-Yearwood has admitted that Cabinet approved the project, the Government had previously said that there is no Cabinet since the Chief Justice’s ruling that the no-confidence motion passed against the Government is valid. Instead, the Government said that there is ministerial plenary but this has been highly criticised since the “plenary” has been functioning with the same powers as the Cabinet.
Since 2017, the CHPA had said that it was on the verge of relocating the persons squatting at the Broad and Lombard Street intersection.
Some 68 adults and 100 children were supposed to be relocated to Barnwell North in Mocha, EBD, but residents there objected to the move.
The Department of Housing, in collaboration with the Food for the Poor (FFTP) organisation, were expected to construct 72 homes for the squatters. Government had said it will match the $42 million contribution by FFTP but the Government was not pleased with the house model and the project was reportedly stalled.
Meanwhile, the previous administration had discussed plans to have the squatters relocated at La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara, and on the East Bank of Demerara but they had refused to remove from the area.
Over 35 persons were affected after a fire gutted several shacks on Lombard and Broad Streets, Charlestown, earlier this month.
