‘Container City’ squatters are now faced with the possibility of being relocated and the authorities are considering establishing a road between South Ruimveldt and the East Bank of Demerara (EBD) as reserve lands are being kept intact for further development.
President Bharrat Jagdeo, while speaking yesterday to residents squatting on the government reserve behind the John Fernandes Container terminal on Mandela Avenue, stated that the authorities are “thinking about connecting”, the South Ruimveldt area to the East Bank and he noted that as the country develops, measures will have to be implemented to broaden the infrastructural network, including the roadways across Region Four.
He noted that connecting the two areas may take time, since according to him several things may have to be considered in undertaking such a venture. The president noted that there had been plans to connect the East Bank with the East Coast of Demerara via the Ogle area but according to him such plans were shelved since they might have been too costly.
Yesterday’s forum was convened for residents to air their views on the regularization or their possible relocation from the area.
Approximately 250 persons live in the area, which stretches west from the periphery of Shirley Field Ridley Square to the Sanata Textile area. Residents have been living in the area since in the 1970s and according to some of them, it is one of the few “flood-free” areas in the city.
The President, who was accompanied by Housing Minister Irfaan Ali, PPP/C community development advisor Philomena Sahoye-Shury and presidential adviser Odinga Lumumba, told the residents that the administration has been carrying out valuable work in taking stock of the living conditions of the citizenry and according to him, at some point decisions have to be made, the aim being to improve the people’s lives.
He said the authorities have regularized several areas, including over 150 communities across the country, and he noted that each citizen, has “to own somewhere, that no one can take away the land from them”, and he noted that forums such as yesterday’s are being undertaken to listen to the views of residents.
He said the administration has spent significant sums of money on improving the Housing sector, as he alluded to lands on the EBD, from Mocha Arcadia heading south, which were purchased from GuySuCo for expansion of the government’s housing programme. The President said the area will be developed and house lots will be available to applicants within a year’s time, noting that this was one of the options available to residents of the area.
The President said that relocation will come with disruption in the lives of the families but according to him, the residents would be comfortable, knowing that the house lot on which they live belongs to them and he alluded to last year’s relocation of residents who resided along the Lamaha Street Embankment.
The President noted that members of the administration will meet from time to time in the near future with residents in different areas. He said that if the Mandela Avenue community, known as Container City, could be regularized then measures could be implemented to this effect.
When the floor was open to questions yesterday, several persons stated that they had been living in the area for more than a decade. One such resident is Leonard George, a self employed father who told the gathering that he was moved to the area some 20 years ago after his house was destroyed by fire. He described the area as one of “the safest” and according to him most persons in the area occupy approximately 3000 square feet of land.
The President stated that George’s views were valuable and his and the views of other residents should be taken into account, noting that, “whatever happens, people must get the idea that they must own a piece of transported land”.
A survey will be undertaken on the area by the Housing Ministry to determine how many persons are willing to relocate from the area and according to Minister Ali, the administration “believes in people’s participation” while making improvements in their lives. He said the administration is committed to the task of development in a fair and equitable manner, while ensuring that this is done to the benefit of the citizens.
