‘Ploying merrily to Christmas’

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, in collaboration with the HDC, put smiles on the faces of the new homeowners who received the keys to their new homes at a Presentation of Keys Ceremony held at Cipriani College of Labour and Cooperative Studies, Valsayn.

Minister of the Housing and Urban Development, Randall Mitchell, in his feature address immediately went into election mode by responding to the criticisms of his plan by former Housing Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal.

“Since my announcement (at a similar key distribution function, National Academy for the Performing Arts’ South campus, San Fernando), those opposed to us have criticised and condemned this as an election ploy. If housing 1,000 families is an election ploy, we at the HDC will be happily and merrily ‘ploying’ all the way to Christmas,” said Mitchell. The minister again promised to deliver 1,000 new houses by the end of December.

He said, “We are simply doing our jobs, in a season where family and goodwill is extremely important to all citizens of Trinidad and Tobago.

So I would simply say to Dr Moonilal.... just give me a chance. Allow me to do the work for the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago and you, the new owners.” As a preamble to further cement his ministry’s idea to sell damaged and unfinished houses, Mitchell accused the last administration of spending $5.5 billion to build 3,900 housing units. While the prior PNM administration spent $5 billion to build 16,000 units. He further stated that 1,500 hundred housing units fell into the unfinished or vandalised category.

According to the minister, the HDC has already been instructed to come up with a formal policy and framework for the disposal of these assets to qualifying recipients. Upon completion, the policy and framework would be taken to Cabinet for approval.

Mitchell reiterated that the State is already financially burdened and recipients of these vandalised houses would agree to undertake the minor work needed to complete the house, without having to wait on the HDC.

The minister informed the new owners that their houses were heavily subsidised and they did not pay for the development infrastructure and paid minimally for the land. He also stated that a HDC house costing $500,000, cost between $900 000 to $1 million in the open market.

The houses distributed were from the Fairfield, Princes Town and Cyprus, San Fernando areas. When asked, the minister was unable to quantify at the time, what was the monetary saving to Government by selling vandalised houses.