The Ministry of Housing and the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) have rejected claims that surveyors directed a woman to the wrong house lot at Plantation Le Ressouvenir, East Coast Demerara, stating that she constructed a residential building on a commercial parcel never allocated to her.
Responding to the issue circulating on social media, the Ministry said the woman was allocated Parcel 394 but instead built on Parcel 460, which is designated for commercial use.
“The Ministry categorically rejects any suggestion that its surveyors misdirected the allottee or showed her the wrong house lot,” the release stated.
According to the Ministry, the construction was discovered during monitoring and enforcement exercises across housing schemes. It maintained that Parcel 460 was never identified, assigned or allocated to the woman.
A Notice of Contravention was issued on September 18, 2026, giving her one month to relocate to her allocated lot and demolish the structure, the Ministry said.
The woman subsequently requested ownership of the commercial parcel on which she had built, but that request was denied.
The Ministry further stated that, during an engagement with a staff member on September 24, on the sidelines of a community meeting at Better Hope, East Coast Demerara, the woman acknowledged that she knew she had constructed on the wrong lot.
“The allottee admitted that she was aware she had constructed on the wrong lot,” the release said.
Following the discovery, the woman was informed of the steps required to address the matter. Arrangements have also been made for the agency’s surveyors to identify and show her the residential lot officially allocated to her.
The Ministry said it nevertheless provided her with a Steel and Cement Housing Subsidy voucher to assist with starting the foundation on her allocated parcel.
In its statement, the Ministry reminded allottees that receiving a lot within a housing scheme does not authorise them to occupy or build on another parcel.
“An allotment in a scheme does not give anyone the right to occupy or construct on a parcel of land that has not been assigned to them,” it stated.
Allottees were urged to confirm the precise location and boundaries of their lots with CH&PA surveyors before commencing construction. The Ministry warned that failing to do so could lead to unlawful occupation, encroachment, financial losses and enforcement action.
The Ministry and CH&PA said monitoring and enforcement will continue across housing developments to ensure compliance with allocation requirements.
