E’bo housing officials being investigated for illegally selling lands

Sep 02, 2017 News

Minister within the Ministry of Communities Valerie Adams-Yearwood and a team from

Detained: Safeia Razak

the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) on Thursday visited the Pomeroon-Supenaam area in Region Two and distributed 23 house lots to the residents.
Seventy-four-year-old Clothilda Benn of Charity was one of those to receive a plot of land.
Benn, who is a pensioner, explained that “I applied for a house lot years, years, years ago. I was given one, they took it back from me, I was given another one, they took it back and sold it to somebody and now they give me one in Onderneeming… I do not mind, so I feel it is good that they are here to get things cleared up.”
Dawn Marks also expressed her appreciation after receiving her plot of land. She said “right now I am living on government reserve for so many years and I glad to get the land. Since 1978 I have been living on government reserve, I made all my children there and now that I am 55 years of age, I am glad to know that I get a land of my own.”
Minister Adams-Yearwood indicated that a number of persons were successful in receiving house lots, even though they only applied Thursday at the meeting.
“I am not going to come here with house lots available for allocation and go back with it because somebody only applied today. What I did was I dealt with those who had applications from previous years, and when that number was satisfied, the persons who applied today or earlier in 2017, they

Minister Valerie Adams-Yearwood signing off on an application to issue a house lot to one of the residents.

also benefitted, and I think that is a big plus,” the Minister said.
According to the Department of Public Information, the visit to the region was due to the dismissal of the Regional Housing Officer, who it was found had sold house lots and provided residents with false receipts.
This, she said, left many residents almost helpless, as they could not get housing issues resolved. According to the Minister, the assistant RHO will also be investigated when she returns from annual leave.
The assistant RHO has since been identified as Safeia Razak. She was reportedly detained by police on Thursday at her home in Anna Regina.
However, Minister Adams-Yearwood indicated that a team from the CH&PA will be visiting the Region on a weekly basis to address housing issues. These include land titles and transports, squatting, new applicants among other matters. The next regions to benefit from such activities by the CH&PA are Regions One, Six and Seven.

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