Dear Editor,
In response to letter dated January 21 in the Kaieteur News under the caption ‘Landmark ruling against the Registrar of Lands,‘ I wish to set the record straight.
At no time did the learned judge compel me to sign the Certificate of Title. The nisi order for the application by Parbatie Khan was complied with in that I discharged my duty in signing the said Certificate of Title on January 3, 2012 and same was uplifted by Ms Shondelle Sandy, clerk to Mr Mirza Sahadat, attorney-at-law on the January 6, 2012. I received a notice for the matter to be heard before Justice Patterson on January 17, 2012. I attended court. Under the circumstances I fail to see a “Landmark ruling” against me.
Further, on February 3, 2012, the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs visited the Deeds Registry and Land Registry, New Amsterdam, where he met with the staff and also the Berbice Bar Association.
In a taped recording aired on NCN Channel 11 on February 7, 2012 I heard Mr Mirza Sahadat say that the Registrar of Lands brought down all the documents for the Berbice Land Registry to Georgetown and that he wants them returned to Berbice. Absolute total rubbish. I don’t know where he got this information from, but like everything else put the blame on me.
When Michael Seepersaud was immediately dismissed from the Land Registry, New Amsterdam on July 19, 2010 the computer , seals, etc, were brought down to Georgetown that very afternoon. From that date to November 1, 2010 all Berbice matters were dealt with here in Georgetown. On November 2, 2010 everything belonging to the said Berbice registry was returned. I accompanied the driver along with two of the land registry clerks.
If the documents are still in Georgetown as claimed by Mr Sahadat, why does the land registry have two clerks working in New Amsterdam; also how do they deal with the lawyers and members of the public? If this was indeed so, then the President of the Berbice Bar Association Mr Ramesh Rajkumar would have said something to me, the media would have been informed and the relevant government officials notified.
Mr Sahadat went on to say that the Registrar of Lands should do her work. For years now I have been in charge of Land Registry, so what was I doing all that time? Do I twiddle my thumbs in Demerara, visit New Amsterdam and Essequibo on a weekly basis just for the fun of it and to spend the government’s money on meals?
There are a lot of people out there that don’t like me because I do not take bribes. As I have always said I don’t mind letters being sent to the newspapers but they must contain the truth. It seems that people have a problem with speaking the truth. They never give the reason as to the length of time the queries are answered by them, they always say, “It is taking too long.” I have a system in place in which matters are dealt with according to the dates they are returned to this department.
The public is always crying out that public servants take bribes; don’t these same people offer same? If I was a ‘bribe-taker’ I would be friends with all and sundry, but as I am not I stand alone.
Yours faithfully,
Juliet Sattaur
Registrar of Lands
