A SHANTY home located at Kool Acres.
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS
Tribune Staff Reporter
lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
THE Ministry of Social Services will provide housing assistance to Bahamians facing eviction from the Kool Acres and All Saints Way shanty towns, where 162 illegal structures are set to be demolished starting Monday.
People of other nationalities will not get this help, Minister of Works and Family Island Affairs Clay Sweeting suggested yesterday.
He said the impending demolition activities show the government’s zero-tolerance approach to “illegal and unregulated structures” that “compromise the safety and orderly development of our nation”.
“We recognise the hardships many face and efforts are underway to facilitate as smooth a transition as possible for affected residents,” he said. “Let there be no misunderstanding –– safety, order, and the rule of law will be upheld without compromise.”
During yesterday’s press conference, Mr Sweeting, the head of the Unregulated Communities Action Task Force, referred often to the Ministry of Social Service’s role in addressing the potential human consequences of the evictions, but no one from Social Services was there to answer questions from the press.
It is unknown how many people will be affected or helped or for how long they will receive housing assistance.
“Social Services are assisting Bahamian citizens in that regard,” Mr Sweeting said about housing, adding: “Social Services will provide housing.”
“We understand that Bahamians do live in these unregulated communities so we ensure that the Bahamians are assisted.”
Mr Sweeting suggested that non-Bahamians would be dealt with differently. The Department of Immigration, he noted, could deal with those who lack permits or legal status to be in the country.
Asked about the potential for increased homelessness, he said: “The work permit holder is obligated by law that if you get a work permit for an individual, you are to provide housing for them. That is immigration law.”
Mr Sweeting said law enforcement officers will monitor activities in the shanty towns until demolitions begin.
He said strict access control will be enforced on the demolition day to ensure a safe process.
He said there are more than ten unregulated communities in New Providence and that shanty towns across the country will be targeted strategically.
Authorities posted eviction notices in the Kool Acres and All Saints Way communities on October 2. Unlike in the past, there are no immediate signs that the government’s eviction plans will be stymied in courts. Supreme Court Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson ruled earlier this year that the Minnis administration’s 2018 shanty town eradication policies were legal. That decision helped pave the way for the government to initiate an airtight legal process under the Buildings Regulation Act.
Many of the Haitian residents in the shanty towns have told The Tribune they are unemployed or are temporary workers with dependents and nowhere to go.
Some said potential rental units are unavailable because they are under renovation. Others said landlords limit how many children can live in a space, prohibiting families with more than a few children.
The residents have taken the government’s warnings seriously. Many have packed their bags and are ready to move out.
Comments
bahamianson 1 year, 1 month ago
The Government of the Bahamas needs to put out notice on the news and popular radio stations to warn future would be squatters that this will not be tolerated. If they invest their money in a home illegally, they will lose their home.
bahamianson 1 year, 1 month ago
There is no such thing as low cost house in the Bahamas. The government needs to launch a campaign teaching young men and women about the responsibility of have a child. Youneed a home first , then a child. You dont have a child first , then look for a home.
ScubaSteve 1 year, 1 month ago
How about offering FREE birth control -- condoms, the pill, the morning after pill, etc. This would be a very, very, very EASY and CHEAP first step by the Govt, hospitals, schools, and/or churches.
ohdrap4 1 year, 1 month ago
The problem will be greatly reduced if employers were to be charged and fined 10000 with hiring illegal immigrants. I recall ONE, ONE employer from Freeport being charged years ago and never heard of an outcome.
Other employers pay a housing allowance , but the employee pockets it. In that case they should cancel the permit.
From time to time there is a report of how many permits were granted, but they never report how many were declined and how many were canceled.
hrysippus 1 year, 1 month ago
Social Services to help displaced Bahamians – not other nationalities, is it possible that the people who are most in need of help are those children born in this country who do not have a nationality? As always the innocents suffer most, but we do not care. Ignore a problem and it will go away, or else it might just fester. I hope everyone has been taught their real un spun history about the previous most senior politician encouraging immigration into a particular island to create a supporter voter base that would vote for his candidate and also provide the labour needed by that particular candidate.
ScubaSteve 1 year, 1 month ago
Yep, for a Christian nation to completely abandon the homeless and less fortunate citizens of other countries that are currently residing here is absolutely appalling and borders on pure evil. Yes... the illegal structures need to go, but you must also offer a solution or alternative. Clearly there is a massive NEED for cheap housing.
ohdrap4 1 year, 1 month ago
Give them a one way ticket to new York city.
Problem with all this wokeness is that you will find one exception to stop the carnival.
There will always be someone unfairly advantaged.
birdiestrachan 1 year, 1 month ago
Their employer are suppose to provide housing
CHRISTIAN PEOPLE are not stupid. The children home is indeed of funds. Seven children out of wedlock seems to be a badge of honor
birdiestrachan 1 year, 1 month ago
Why if they are holders of work permits they are only working two days or not at all something is wrong at the immigration department
ted4bz 1 year, 1 month ago
Whatever they do will be next to nothing.
John 1 year, 1 month ago
How many decades has this been going on where as fast as they demolish illegal shanty’s, others pop back up? And until the major and underlying problem is addressed this problem will continue to linger and to BLOSSOM. There is a housing shortage in most major islands in the Bahamas. There is an even greater shortage of affordable housing on islands like Nee Providence and Sbaco and parts of Eleuthera and Exuma where there is some economy that draws low income workers but no desire to create affordable housing. People don’t want to invest in low rentals because they are a big headache to manage and because of high maintenance and high tenant turnover, they can be a expense or loss for the owners. Despite being poorly maintained, the waiting list for government rental units are as long as the traffic line on Sir Milo Butler Highway. So what are the solutions? Government assisted housing? More rental units in the same space ir higher rises than two or three stories? When these illegal shanties are demolished, several hundred people will be displaced from living accommodations. Some children, some infants, some Bahamians and many nonBahamians. And ALL the presently available housing on New Providence cannot accommodate half of them.
John 1 year, 1 month ago
Do you know most major cities in the US have a homeless problem where the population is growing by leaps and bounds? And whilst a good number of homeless in the US are due to drug and substance abuse there are many who just hit the bottom of the barrel. Many are US war veterans who served overseas and came back with mental disorders or other conditions that prevented them from working. In Nee York, the Governor attempted to make being homeless illegal. And homeless people were booked, arraigned and sent to jail. But this only complicated the problem because once these people served their jail time, they found it more difficult to get a job with a criminal record. In California, officials made it illegal to pitch a tent in the city. So the homeless moved from the city streets and sidewalks at night down to the river bsnk. This created a bigger problem because they were bathing, urinating and passing human beasts in the river and on its banks. This threaten a health problem because the river was a source of the city’s water supply.
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