Success Squatters Protest Freedom House…Land Allegedly Flooded By Government, Residents Homeless

Squatters today from Success, East Coast Demerara protested against the government in front of Freedom House in Georgetown, demanding a solution to the lands belonging to the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GUYSUCO). 

Gavin Matthews from the ‘The Gavin Matthews Show’ from Guyanapress visited the location and spoke with some of the protesters. Many of the demonstrators indicated that they no longer have anywhere to go with the land currently being flooded by water thanks to the PPP/C government.  

“Protesters, many of whom consist of single unemployed women with children, are currently demanding land, titles, and an opportunity for the matter to be resolved with the government.“We want a house lot, and we are not moving, we applied for years and no response from the Ministry of Housing,” claimed protesters in attendance. 

One protester stated that she had met with President Irfaan Ali when he was Minister of Housing under the PPP administration before 2015 and was promised a house lot. But as of today, she continues to wait for a call from the new President of Guyana, Dr. Irfaan Ali, about that same promise. 

“He promised to call me, but no call from him since then, and now he is president, and we are in the same position.”

As previously reported, this remains an ongoing dilemma in Guyana that has extended for several years, where the application process for land titles have been known to take decades. Squatters occupying lands at Vryheid’s Lust, Success, Chateau Margot, and East Coast Demerara, received warning letters from the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GUYSUCO).

“Some of these fields have been vandalized by the squatting activities resulting in the destruction and or loss of material developed over a decade of scientific research in variety improvement, therefore setting back the development of better yielding varieties by several years,” a statement from GUYSUCO.

The squatters hope that the government will urgently look into the situation since they have no other options for relocation. 

The squatters will continue their protest until the government presents a resolution to the long withstanding problem.