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Heavily armed men demolish 6 homes at Anna Catherina

…claim to be acting on behalf of CH&PA

Six houses at Anna Catherina on the West Coast of Demerara (WCD) were destroyed on Friday afternoon after four armed men stormed the properties demanding that the families evacuate with their belongings.

Bibi Aleena Dhoray

When Guyana Times visited the scene, the residents related that the men charged into their properties at about 13:00h and the ordeal lasted for more than an hour. It was explained that they have been living on the land for a few months now but the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) had reached out to them, informing them that they will have to move. The residents said after explaining that they had nowhere to go, they were asked to file land applications and if the area is not allocated to be regularised, then they will get land elsewhere.
As such, they were shocked when the armed men entered the area on Friday and started to demolish the buildings. During the process, several pieces of equipment and tools were taken, while others were tossed onto the street.

A section of one of the dwellings that were torn apart

Speaking with this publication, one of the residents, Bibi Aleena Dhoray, explained that “two come in here with a sledgehammer and a crowbar and they start break from the back…Then they come here and the started breaking the bathroom, the kitchen sink, the shed…I had to beg them not to break the place because we have nowhere to go.”
The woman stated that her child was almost injured by a piece of wood that fell during the demolition exercise. She pleaded that they cannot afford another place to live.

One of the houses that were completely demolished

“We don’t have nowhere to go. We come here and this is all that we have. They break the place and a wood fall on the bed and my children sleeping there. My husband had to bring the baby outside,” she stated.
Meanwhile, Dianna Bacchus said after the men started breaking the buildings, she asked them why they were demolishing the houses and were told that they are acting on behalf of CH&PA.
“I tell them that they can’t break the house. We never receive a notice or anything and they saying that they from Central Housing and Planning Authority and that we can’t live here.”

These residents were left to contemplate their next move after the demolition exercise

Adding to that, Nandalall Jodhan related that the men threw his belongings onto the roadway and carried away some of his tools and a generator. He was still counting his losses in distress.
“We hustling for somewhere to live. They didn’t send no notice or nothing. They come and break down the place and carry way all my tools, generator, everything. They throw out everything on the road, even the hammock that I does sleep in.”
Others who were affected were still contemplating their next move since they could not afford to go elsewhere. Some vacated the land and were staying with relatives.
“I get two sons and I can’t maintain rent money. I got to pay bills, look after the children and send them to school,” one man said.
Calls by Guyana Times to the head of the CH&PA, Lelon Saul, for a comment on the issue, went unanswered.

 

Replies sorted oldest to newest

I don’t have a problem with the government enforcing the law against illegal squatting but it would be proper to first throw the Coalition out since they are also squatting illegally in office.

FM

I guess rules are rules and laws are laws but compassion for the poor transcends logics of laws. These landless people has or had no favors from even the PPP. 

Life is full of mysteries, as the Hindi movie Waqt unfolded. Who knows what destiny holds for those who refuse to manage the sufferings of the impoverished in Guyana. 

With all the lands and water in Guyana, yet ppl can't have water in pipes and not even  a lil piece a space to live. 

A backward society trying to implement modern laws. A disrespectul and illegal government being a bully. Jagdeo the Indo Champion is a character right out of a Bhojpuri Movie-a freaking bully as well.   

S

Siegnet,

A nation of under three quarter million people, 53 yrs of Independence, leaders can't get it right. All you hear from the failed leaders are policy planning..etc.. they flaunt their wealth, living high life from proceeds of government coffers.

How much does it take, to do a survey of housing needs of the population and provide  house lots for the people, where there are abundant land available.

Django
Last edited by Django

These poor people. 83K square miles of land and people gotta live like this. Over 50 years of independence with ahwe "genius" people in charge and the place is a shithole. disgraceful.

FM
Iguana posted:

These poor people. 83K square miles of land and people gotta live like this. Over 50 years of independence with ahwe "genius" people in charge and the place is a shithole. disgraceful.

Yuh think Burnham first started to dig the shithole? Not to say CBJ woulda done any better. Man, the colony of British Guiana was a paradise despite wah ppl say about being a British Colony.

There is this saying, "Condemned ppl have eyes, yet dey doan see." Indians and Blacks have a perception problem. Even here on this BB, we quickly resort to that strange way of Guyanese tinking. Even that wannabe Guyanese on here, we witnessing how he taking shape as a pissed off Guyanese. It doan matter if he is Black or Indian. What matters is that he falling in line with the prejudices.  

S

People don't need much to build a lil house and chook two plant. The common sense, decent thing to do is open land for people to develop. Even give them a small frek via loan or grant to help out. GoG is impotent to needs of the people.

A

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