FARMERS VS MINISTRY —ROW OVER CHAG LANDS

The Ministry says it wants the land to build more houses for house-starved citizens, but the farmers are saying “Food before Houses”.

The crux of the matter is that the farmers claim they had been occupying Guave Road lands for the past 55 years, and their area is known as the breadbasket of Chaguaramas — taking care of the food needs of people as far as Diego Martin, Petit Valley, St James and its other environs.

The president of the Association, Joseph Richardson told Newsday, following a meeting the association held at the Carenage Recreation Ground on Wednesday: “No country can be independent if it cannot feed its people.” He said the government was doing the wrong thing “by taking away our lands, locked in very fertile agricultural lands off Williamsville in the Tucker Valley area.

“We plant pigeon peas, ochro, lettuce, sweet pepper, chive, pumpkin and corn, not to mention other smaller crops.

Not only do Carenage people depend on us to make sure that their families are fed, but we farmers make a living out of this industry.

“Yes, we want houses, but we prefer to eat first,” he said.

According to Richardson, the land in question is Wetland 56 on the Agricultural map of Trinidad.

So desperate is the association to prevent their lands from being seized that the Guave Road Association has printed pamphlets, calling on all the people of Carenage to support them, and they have been promised their support. Speaker after speaker lamented that “government would put houses in front of food.”

“It’s a criminal act, they told the Minister”..

“Houses to replace foodcrops? God forbid.

“Find another location for housing...not Tucker Valley...not prime agricultural lands.

Not our Tucker Valley water supply.”

Richardson said they learnt about the Ministry of Housing’s plans through an advertisement put out by the Chaguaramas Development Authority that they had to vacate the lands, and since then, they have been trying desperately to get the government to reverse its decision.

Although it sees nothing wrong with the proposed Housing Project, the Water and Sewerage Authority said it is still concerned about the domestic sewage disposal from the proposed housing development area.