Minister of Housing and Water Colin Croal yesterday told the National Assembly that the APNU+AFC administration’s largest housing project failed to accomplish the objective of facilitating home ownership because the former government failed to amend the relevant laws.
Homeownership, he told the House, is the main aim of every Guyanese citizen, which is why the PPP/C has always prioritised affordable housing but the APNU+AFC, he claimed, derailed the sector with weak ideas and poor implementation.
“They did not and could not clear the backlog or even meet the target they set. They promised houses to public servants and could not deliver. They promised incentives to private sector to reduce cost of construction materials and again could not deliver. They could not keep any of the promises that they made in their manifesto,” Croal stressed as he made his contribution to the 2021 budget debate.
According to Croal, the former government had one big idea, which was poorly executed.
“They had one big idea for the housing sector and they still could not get it right. Their big idea was let’s introduce duplexes and they proceeded to have contractors construct duplexes but they did not have the Condominium Act amended to include this type of house,” Croal told the House.
The Act referenced regulates the division of properties into parts that are to be owned individually and parts that are to be owned in common; makes provision for the use and management of such properties and makes provision for the assignment of certain properties owned by the government, etc. to the tenants thereof; and for matters connected therewith.
It specifies that a “condominium” means any building divided into units, with each unit being attached to, or dependent to a substantial degree on the other units forming the building for support, shelter or easements for passage, or for provision of water, sewerage, drainage, gas, electricity, garbage, artificially heated or cooled air and other services (including telephone).
Stabroek News understands that one of the major issues relates to the size of the properties on which the duplexes were built, which in some cases fall well below the legally established standard for an individual lot size. Once separated for administrative purposes, each lot is expected to measure a minimum of 40ft x 80 ft but this is not the case.
The Minister argued that by failing to amend the Act, the APNU+AFC allowed citizens to invest in properties which they cannot insure and for which they cannot get title documents. “Even more worrying is that the banks are not amenable to holding duplexes as collateral. How can any Minister of Housing with sense allow this to happen?” he questioned.
All is not lost, however, as Croal declared his government would rescue the sector, beginning with an amendment to the Act that is expected to be tabled in the House by mid-year.
The rescue mission will continue with the allocation of 50,000 house lots over the next five years, 10,000 of which will be allocated in 2021. In addition, 7,000 land titles are expected to be issued.
Croal reminded that 3,600 lots and 413 titles have already been handed over to citizens and promised 1,000 homes for low income owners as well as 1,000 homes for Region 10 residents through a public-private partnership and community involvement.
