Close to 100 EBE residents get land titles after over 20-year wait

As Government continues its mission to clear the backlog in the housing sector where persons are either waiting to be awarded their house lots or provided with their land titles, almost 100 people were on Friday presented with their titles in the community of Zeelugt, East Bank Essequibo (Region Three).
In his address to members of some 87 households who received their titles, Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, informed the residents that his office was specially mandated by President Dr Irfaan Ali to fix anomalies in the system that prevent persons from receiving their titles.

According to Nandlall, who described Guyana’s housing programme as perhaps the best in the Caribbean, this includes working with other Government agencies to address technical deficiencies. The Attorney General was accompanied by Housing Minister Collin Croal and other officials from the Housing Ministry as well as the AG Chambers.
Nandlall reminded that a similar process was recently concluded, which saw Certificates of Title being granted to over 50 families at Non Pariel, East Coast Demerara. Similar processes are currently ongoing at Number 46 Village, Corentyne, Cotton Tree and Number Three village, West Coast Berbice. Nandlall promised the residents that the process will be completed within three months.
“It embraces several components, including allocation of house lots, allocation of houses, partnerships with the Private Sector in the establishment of housing schemes, regularisation of squatter settlements, as well as addressing anomalous situations where for some technical reason persons have not received titles for lands they have been occupying for protracted periods. The current exercise falls into the latter category,” he said.
The meeting ultimately set out to commence a process that will eventually result in the grant of Certificate of Titles to the households in that community. The persons who collected their titles were either employees of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) or their descendants who had been allotted house lots as far back as 1997.
Unfortunately, titles for these lands were never granted to the allottees, although the block title was passed from GuySuCo to the Sugar Welfare Fund (SILWIF). An occupational survey plan has already been completed and the processing of the titles to individual allottees will now begin.
Croal meanwhile used the occasion to update the residents on the activities of his Ministry in Region Three, specifically in the drilling of a new well at Parika which will improve water supply on the East Bank of Essequibo, including Zeelugt. The Minister also addressed a number of other issues raised by the residents in relation to the Housing and Water sectors.
Also in attendance were Parliamentary Secretary Vikash Ramkissoon, Region Three Regional Chairman Inshan Ayube and the Neighbourhood Democratic Council Chairman of the locality.
Last month, Nandlall was also present when residents of Non Pariel New Area, East Coast Demerara (ECD), received long awaited titles for lands that in some cases were first occupied by their forebears, former workers of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo). In fact, the distribution ended a more than 20-year wait.
The handover of the titles took place in the heart of the community. Nandlall was accompanied by Minister within the Housing Ministry Susan Rodrigues, during the distribution of the titles to the 45 recipients.
In his address to the residents, Nandlall urged them to secure their titles in light of its importance. He pointed to the high incidence of property fraud in Guyana, as well as the shenanigans of the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government and advised them to get five copies or more of their original titles. (G3)