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‘A lot of scammers around’ – Jagdeo urges citizens to put housing scammers on Facebook
Kaieteur News – Following a barrage of allegations on social media about corrupt practices at the Ministry of Housing and Water, the government agency is urging anyone affected by the scandal to report it to the agency and the police.
Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo
Earlier this week, social activist Melissa Atwell, known publicly as “Melly Mel,” published a series of posts on social media platform Facebook, exposing multiple instances of corruption at the Housing Ministry. On Thursday, the ministry said it received reports on allegations of corruption at the agency involving its employees, relating to housing matters. In light of the allegations, the ministry said it is “committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and service” in the execution of its mandate in the housing sector. The agency said it “take these allegations with utmost seriousness.”
“We encourage anyone with solid evidence of such corrupt activities to come forward and report it immediately to the Guyana Police Force, the Ministers or the Permanent Secretary,” the ministry said. It noted that all information the agency receives regarding corrupt practices will be treated with strict confidence and will be used in its internal investigations. “We are committed to thoroughly investigating any genuine reports of misconduct within the Ministry,” the entity said.
The ministry said it will not condone any form of unethical behaviour or corruption, adding that any of its employees who is “found to be engaging in corrupt transactions will face serious disciplinary action and also the full force of the law, where appropriate.”
In light of the allegations, the ministry noted too that it has intensified “monitoring of the activities in the areas highlighted to ensure that all procedures are strictly followed.” As a reminder, the Housing Ministry said that all applications for house lots are processed directly at agency and its regional offices by authorized employees. “The Ministry does not have any middlemen or external agents who are authorized to conduct business on its behalf,” the agency noted.
Meanwhile, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo while addressing the issue at a press conference on Thursday said that there are “a lot of scams” and many people have been duped. Jagdeo noted that there are professional scammers around. He said reports of such scams should be reported to the police. He also advised affected people to “put it on social media,” noting that he doesn’t have a problem with the latter move, since it will be investigated by the authorities.
The Vice President said it would be illegal for anyone to approach another person with monies for a house lot. “So anyone who comes with a fantastic thing to you, saying I can help you get it, is committing an illegal act,” he said. Jagdeo reiterated that house lot applicants must transact business for house lots at the Housing Ministry, noting that he was approached by persons while on visits to communities who claimed they applied since 2014 for lots. He said he redirected them to the ministry and their applications were successful.
This week Atwell created a stir on Facebook after she posted numerous instances where people claimed they paid sums ranging from $200,000 to $1.5M for house lots to middlemen working within the Ministry of Housing. In some cases, the complaints included video evidence as well as screenshots of WhatsApp chats with the perpetrators at the ministry whom they accused of collecting monies for house lots.
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