Govt mismanaging housing sector, has no plan for low and middle income citizens

The Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana in Article 26, aptly outlines the ‘right to citizens for housing accommodation.’ An analysis of the records at the Central Housing and Planning Authority will show that low and middle-income citizens are being discriminated against, contrary to the mandate of Central Housing & Planning Authority. Established in 1948, Central Housing & Planning Authority’s mandate was “to provide housing for the working class,” who are not property owners.

Since August 2020, I have written ad nauseum about the PPP’s mismanagement of the housing sector. There is NO plan in the housing sector to address the needs of low and middle-income citizens. House lots are priced out of the reach of this vulnerable group, many of whom are forced to live in cramped accommodation with extended family members or squat. Central Housing & Planning Authority is in fact continuing to provide business opportunities for friends, family, and favorites to build houses for resale or rental.

During the PPP/C’s 23 years in office, squatting increased in Guyana, Region 4. Some of these squatting settlements were later regularised. Lots were allocated in other areas without the requisite infrastructure, but a few high income and upper middle-income citizens were able to acquire loans and build.  Many lots remain unoccupied, while some have since been resold off the record. The Central Housing & Planning Authority also engaged private contractors to build “under their supervision”. The sad stories of poorly built houses and crumbling structures are well documented and in the public domain.

It appears that the Central Housing & Planning Authority’s priority was to sell huge swathes of land to private developers, under the pretext of providing affordable housing to working class citizens. Most of these private developers catered to the needs of the wealthy, many of whom were already property owners. As a result, low and middle- income applicants to the Central Housing & Planning Authority, from as far back as the early 90s, are still on the database “waiting for a call for affordable lots”.

A forensic audit of the Central Housing & Planning Authority was conducted by Ram, McRae and Company, a private firm, in 2016 at the request of the Coalition Government. The Report confirmed the Coalition’s concerns that CORRUPTION was rampant at the Central Housing & Planning Authority.

Additionally, an analysis of the chronological waiting list of applicants revealed that housing solutions for low and middle- income citizens had to be urgently addressed. Since that category of citizens had no access to loans from commercial banks at the time, the decision was taken to have the Central Housing & Planning Authority engage contractors to build quality houses under their strict supervision. Allocating lots was not an option since capital would have been unavailable. Models of low-income rent- to- own and other solutions were discussed. Mechanisms for payment to Central Housing & Planning Authority or some approved government agency were also being explored when the Coalition demitted office.

Also, in the years 2016 and 2020, the Coalition Government held promotions, where allottees who were allocated house lots pre-May 2015 and Post May 2015 to enjoy a 50% reduction on the prices of house lots during the celebrations of our nation’s 50^th Independence Anniversary (May 2016) and 50^th Republican Anniversary (Feb. 2020), something the PPPc NEVER did in their initial 23 years. This approach saw many allottees paying off on their balances. These are the small things that matter to ordinary Guyanese. It was and still is painful to hear then and now from allottees, since the return of the PPP regime to office, they scrapped this initiative, and many ordinary Guyanese were faced to pay the full cost for the price of the house lot allocated to them.

It appears that the PPP/C has reverted to their old strategy of ignoring this vulnerable group and I appeal to Minister Croal to urgently provide housing solutions for this vulnerable group. I also strongly recommend that another forensic audit be conducted at Central Housing & Planning Authority for the following reasons:

1. There are allegations of corruption, where staff members are involved in deals to help young professionals and others jump the cue, so well-connected applicants are in receipt of allocations.
2. Allegedly, staff members of Central Housing & Planning Authority own properties in the new schemes and are renting to applicants.
3. Middlemen are facilitating the purchase of lots allocated by Central Housing & Planning Authority at exploitative prices.
4. Houses built, on lots allocated by Central Housing & Planning Authority in the new schemes, are being rented at exorbitant prices by the owners who have other properties elsewhere. This is in breach. because only persons who do not already own property are entitled to house lots from Central Housing & Planning Authority.
5. Houses sold are extremely defective and have caused owners to incur unnecessary expense to fix them.
6. Infrastructure not in place so those who can afford to build cannot do so.

May God’s blessings be upon our nation.