TRANSFORMING itself from a cultivation plot to the largest unregularised squatting community locally, Mount Sinai, commonly referred to as Angoy’s Avenue, the home of almost 5,000 people in New Amsterdam, Berbice, is soon to be regularised.

Its residents will become property owners with transports and legal consumers of electricity when the process of having the eastern fringe of the town is completed.
The procedure towards the transformation has commenced with Ministry of Housing officials meeting and briefing the intended beneficiaries, prior to them having their land surveyed before buying it.
Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle, those who live in the community said that the area has a high recorded incidence of electricity theft and informed that the initiative of regularising the place is most welcome and long overdue.
One of the persons, Ms. Louisa Wills remembered living in what was dubbed ‘cow dam’, where her now 41-year-old was born.
“It was leased cultivation land,” she recalled, before land owners began exploiting their tenants by regularly increasing rentals, which resulted in the formation of the New Haven Coop Society.

COMPULSORY ACQUISITION
Representatives of the group then secured an audience with the then People’s National Congress (PNC) Administration, who took away the lands, through compulsory acquisition.
Subsequently, the society was asked to pay $190,000, in order to be granted ownership but, as the monies were being accumulated, the Government changed and the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) regained the helm.
Then there was a large influx of persons into the area, resulting in the society moving to the court where an injunction was filed against the Central Housing and Planning  Authority (CH&PA), in an effort to prevent outsiders from occupying plots designated for institutions and a recreation park.
However, after two hearings, the matters were stalled and the society was deemed to be defunct.
But, earlier this year, following political consultation A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Parliamentarian Joseph Harmon, representing the New Haven Society, had the injunction withdrawn and the regularisation commenced.
Meanwhile, Community Officer, Mr. Phillip Rose noted that the injunction had, for more than 19 years, prevented some residents from accessing electricity and potable water legally, although persons who had, initially, leased plots were beneficiaries of the utility services.
It was through the intervention of Prime Minister Samuel Hinds that citizens were afforded increased accessibility to water.
Previously, people had to dig holes to get access and, whenever it rained, the flow became contaminated.
Subsequently, pipelines were laid to meet the growing demand of the increasing population.

RELEVANT DOCUMENTATION
Still, electricity was not available to those who were without the relevant documentation, as the utility company insisted on seeing documents showing ownership before current was supplied.
As a result of that insistence, Guyana Power & Light (GPL) lost millions of dollars through constant acts of electricity theft and even a child‘s life was lost because of the denial of legitimate service.
Students living in the community were, often, refused entry into schools after having walked through muddy streets to get to the learning institutions in the township.
Consultations with then President Bharrat Jagdeo led to the formation of the Citizens Development Committee and a subsquent provision of $10M to assist in road development.
Further support came from the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and the Regional Administration of Region 6 (East Berbice/Corentyne), under Mr. Kumkarran Ramdas, resulting in the clearance of the drainage.
The New Amsterdam Town Council was not supportive as the area was unregularised and the residents were not taxpayers.
Several government officials, including Minister of Co-ops, Mr. Dale Bisnauth and then Minister of Water, Mr. Shaik Baksh made failed efforts to have the area developed but the members of the New Haven Society held onto the injunction as a bargaining chip and halted any development.

FORWARD MOVEMENT
Earlier this year, though, following a meeting with Minister Irfaan Ali, persons were informed that the injunctive had been lifted, paving the way for forward movement.
Still, the procedure is not without some hurdles, as the Government is unable to work with the old plan previously designed that had some persons without footpaths and having to depend on the generosity of their neighbours.
In addition, some people had sold lands when they had no legal right to do so as they were all squatters.
Nevertheless, despite the challenges ahead, residents of Angoy’s Avenue are pleased with the new wind of development coming their way and long for the moment when they can operate their electrical appliances without hurrying to disconnect on seeing the vehicle transporting GPL workers and ranks from the Guyana Police Force (GPF).