THE Ministry of Housing through the Region 2 Housing  Department has dismantled a house from a lot in the Charity New Housing Scheme last Wednesday morning in an effort to stop squatting.

Reports said a demolition team was sent by the Ministry of Housing to demolish a small wooden house that was occupied by Dawn Smith and her five children, aged between two and eight years old.
Meanwhile, Regional Housing Officer, Mr. Gayduyal Ramnauth, giving the background to the  demolition exercise, said that the woman had squatted on the lot which is owned by another person. He said the woman built a 10′ by 10′ shack on the lot some years ago and lived there.
According to the housing officer, the owner after discovering the illegal shack on his lot reported the matter to the housing office at Anna Regina and a notice was sent to the squatter. Mr. Ramnauth said the woman ignored the notice and continued to live on the lot.
He said a second notice was sent to her requesting her removal but even after the owner started to fill up the lot with earth she did not remove.
According to the housing officer, during a period of heavy rainfall the shack fell down and the woman then constructed a wooden building on the lot that had been  filled up  with earth.  Mr. Ramnauth said he then sent another notice through the Charity NDC for her to remove from the lot and this notice was read to her at the NDC office but she still did not remove.
The Ministry of Housing was then informed about the squatter’s refusal to remove from the houselot and  Ramnauth said he went himself and spoke to the woman about her illegal occupation of the lot but she did not listen.
Reports said while the demolition exercise was in progress a large crowd gathered and persons expressed dissatisfaction over the actions of the Ministry of Housing in dismantling the house and leaving the woman and her little children in the rain.
Scores of residents said they were not pleased with what had happened to the poor woman and her little children and are calling for full investigations into the matter.