00:00Occupying state land and failing to vacate upon request and on notice, while a sensitive
00:07and complex matter, is an unlawful act which will not be tolerated.
00:12It's the view shared by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley as he responded to concerns raised
00:18over the manner in which squatting families were evicted from state lands in Arima on
00:23Thursday.
00:24They were given advice as to not to do it.
00:26They were given advice as to when they should leave, given the opportunity to leave in a
00:31decent and humane way and persons have taken the position not to cooperate.
00:36If that happens, we can't run the country like that.
00:40You can't occupy land and then decide that you're going to fight to hold on to it.
00:47He was responding to TV6 News following the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the 90-apartment
00:52City Heights housing development in San Fernando on Thursday.
00:57Also at the event was Lahoketa Talparu MP Foster Cummings who had similar views.
01:02I empathise with all those families who may have found themselves in difficulties, but
01:09as citizens we have to understand that there is a law and we must obey the law so that
01:14I will take the time when it becomes available, when the residents who wish to meet with me
01:21will have the opportunity to meet with the MP who has very regular meetings with constituents,
01:26but understand the point as a country, we have to be law-abiding.
01:31Meanwhile, Housing Minister Camille Robinson-Regis says communities like the one demolished on
01:36Thursday have been increasing and sometimes, she says, they do more than just occupy.
01:43Some of those people moved there very recently, so it means that they did have somewhere else
01:50where they lived previously and they saw an empty location and they decided to come
01:56there and conduct an illegal act.
01:59So we did have to protect the state's assets.
02:02We have seen an explosion of squatting and even people who have decided that they can
02:10sell the state land, what we call squat lords.
02:14They don't own the land, it's the state's land, but they are selling the land to people.
02:19Which is unfair because the persons cannot get title to land under those circumstances
02:24and they will still be moved off the land.
02:26As to whether or not state agencies will be mobilising to find alternative housing for
02:31those evicted families, the Housing Minister says they will see what can be done.
02:37We have found that a few of those persons have applications in the HDC system and once
02:47they qualify, most of them more than likely will qualify for rentals.
02:52Once they qualify, we will be processing their applications.
02:56We can't say that they will be given priority because it will be unfair to those other persons
03:03who also have applications there.
03:05But we do know that they have applications in and we will see what can be done.
03:11Cindy Raguba, Chika Singh, TV6 News.
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