The Ministry of Housing and Water today accused seven families of squatters at Cane View/Herstelling (Mocha) of impeding plans for the Eccles to Great Diamond Four-Lane Highway and gave them a final grace period of two weeks to vacate the area.
In a full-page advertisement in today’s Sunday Stabroek, the ministry said ‘We call on residents to put personal and political agendas aside and see the development vision the Government is working towards. The Government of Guyana remains committed to working with the squatters, as we work towards the provision of housing solutions for all”.
It outlined a series of efforts made to regularise the area and relocate families to new zones but said that “persons continue to use this sensitive matter as a political football, much to the disadvantage of those involved in this illegal activity”.
The ministry said that to date, $250m has been disbursed as compensation for families that have moved and $5.1m was given as compensation for crops.
The advertisement said that 20 families have relocated from the Block `X’ Portion, Plantation Herstelling and accepted compensation while the seven remaining families “continue to be defiant and making unreasonable demands”.
The ministry said that their actions have resulted in the stalling of a massive development project.
The ministry provided a sequence of interventions stretching as far back as May 2008 when there was an engagement with Mocha residents. The process recommenced in earnest in September 2021 when land was identified for those who were prepared to relocate. In December 2021 house lots were allocated to the beneficiaries and cheques equivalent to the current market value for properties, site improvement and displacement costs were handed over to squatters.
This year, the Central Housing and Planning Authority also facilitated the application process to the Guyana Water Inc and the Guyana Power and Light for services in the areas to where the squatters were relocated. Of the remaining 15 families, the ministry said that eight are at varying stages of relocation while seven remain non-compliant.