As September 1, 2025, approaches and the people of Guyana prepare to elect a Government of their choice, several political parties contesting the Elections have unveiled their five-year plans.
The incumbent PPP/C launched its Manifesto on Monday, August 18, 2025. However, when one carefully examines the document, the plans appear overly ambitious. The critical question is whether these promises can truly succeed and deliver the outcomes the people of Guyana anticipate in building a nation where all citizens benefit from our patrimony.
For this missive, I will highlight the PPP/C’s proposals for the housing sector, should they return to office after September 1, 2025. From the outset, it must be stated that under successive PPP/C administrations, the housing needs of ordinary Guyanese, especially those struggling to acquire a plot of land to build a legacy for their families, have been largely ignored. Between 1992 and 2015, the PPP/C had no comprehensive housing policy for twenty-three years. The only legacy of that period was the requirement that applicants must be 21 years old and have children before they could even apply for land.
When the Coalition Government assumed office in May 2015, it inherited a backlog of some 60,000 housing applications dating back to the 1990s through April 2015. This backlog is clear evidence of the PPP/C’s poor management of the housing sector, which was established to provide accommodation for the working class but instead became a tool for allocating lands at giveaway prices to friends, family, and cronies (Kaieteur News, 2015). Meanwhile, thousands of ordinary Guyanese were left knocking on doors and waiting endlessly in the Ministry’s corridors; an unacceptable reality in an oil economy.
The Coalition, without the benefit of oil revenues, sought to address this backlog fairly. The age requirement was lowered from 21 to 18, and allocations were made transparently (Ministry of Communities Housing Report, 2018).
In 2020, the PPP/C campaigned on a promise to make 50,000 allocations. I have repeatedly challenged Minister Colin Croal to provide proof that 50,000 allocations were indeed delivered and to identify the locations of these lands. My own records show that only about 11,000 house lots were distributed, and hundreds of allottees are still waiting to be shown their land despite having made payments over two years ago. To date, the Minister has failed to prove otherwise (Stabroek News, 2023).
Now, on the eve of elections, the PPP/C is making another grand promise; between 2025 and 2030, they plan to build 40,000 houses. Curiously, this figure differs from the earlier 30,000 announced by President Irfaan Ali and Mr. Bharrat Jagdeo. How can Guyanese take this seriously, when they failed to deliver on their 50,000-lot promise?
Evidence is clear; many of the houses built since 2020 remain unoccupied, overtaken by high weeds; others are poorly constructed (Stabroek News, 2024). The steel and cement subsidy scheme has been disproportionately distributed, disadvantaging many. Worse, in an oil-rich economy, the PPP/C has relegated low-income families to 600-square-foot houses, while their wealthy associates enjoy better accommodation.
By contrast, the APNU has outlined a housing plan based on fairness and accessibility. Their proposed “rent-to-own” policy will allow allottees to occupy houses immediately while making payments to the Government until obligations are fulfilled. This is a tangible, people-centered approach. The PPP/C, by comparison, has offered no clear housing policy, only the recycled promises of 1992–2015 and 2020–2025.
Editor, since the PPP/C failed to deliver on its 50,000-lot promise, Guyanese are right to question where exactly these proposed 40,000 houses will be constructed. The nation must wait to see whether, after 2025, these manifesto pledges are yet another set of empty words.
I close by reminding all Guyanese, do not fall into the trap of the PPP/C’s delusions. They have no genuine intention of making affordable housing available to those who truly need it. Article 26 of the Constitution of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana enshrines the right to housing accommodation for all Guyanese. As we head to the polls, let us analyze this regime’s performance on merit, not political spin. For too long, a few politicians have enriched themselves while the masses remain deceived. That must change on September 1, 2025.
Guyana will rise again!
God bless our country, Guyana!
Yours truly,
Annette Ferguson
