Residents of Mocha Arcadia, East Bank Demerara yesterday voiced their disapproval at the Ministry of Communities’ plans to relocate squatters from Lombard and Broad streets to the extension of Barnwell North.
At a community meeting organised by the Mocha Arcadia Neigh-bourhood Democratic Council (NDC) at the community primary school, residents highlighted possible social issues their community could be plagued with.
Many residents said that they are fearful that robberies and drug trafficking would be on the rise in the community. Other residents said that they are against the move since the lands in question are ancestral lands and it would be an intrusion on the government’s part if the plan receives the green light. A few said that they are children of original residents and to secure a piece of land has been an issue for them. Therefore, they said that it would be unfair and disrespectful if squatters from Lombard and Broad streets are given a free pass to occupy the lands in their community.
On July 31, Minister in the Ministry of Communities, Valerie Patterson-Yearwood, who heads the Department of Housing,
