…says due diligence checks need tightening
Operations Director of the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), Denise King-Tudor has admitted that the agency has a lot of loose ends to tie with regard to their due diligence process.
At a press brief on Monday, she stated that the CH&PA is working to reassess their various systems and processes in order to avoid being duped and to be able to effectively fulfil the agency’s mandate.
“Well we’re in the process of reviewing our allocation criteria and the selection of persons because persons can come to us…applicants, in fact, they provide documentation to say this is what I earn but sometimes I am of the view that persons do not give us all the information pertaining to their financial status. And so you’ll find where there are changes in terms of they’re able to expand and you know to develop that unit [house] and make it much larger and that sort of thing…So we are in the process of reviewing the allocation criteria and the whole selection process and I believe [that in] that aspect of it, [if] we’re able to complete it, we’re going to see some level of improvement in our selection process,” the Operations Director told the media.
There have been numerous instances of persons who have been allocated homes under the Government’s “Housing Solutions” project, which was aimed at providing affordable housing mainly to the working and middle class but as soon as they are being acquired, major expansion and remodelling works are done on them.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the CH&PA asserted that the agency’s main goal is to serve the “small man” and to ensure that they can achieve a better life.
“At this agency, we provide housing for the entire nation and that is why we have this huge demand here. Many people who come to CHPA could go on the open market and purchase land or houses and maybe we will need to review that because as the country’s economy improves, we will need to review that. Those who have the means, need to go on the open market and purchase house lot and houses. Don’t come here, we are for the small man,” Saul said.
However, it has been observed that a lot of persons have been able to con the system due to the agency’s lack of proper due diligence measures being in place to ensure that persons who are approved fit the relevant criteria.
The CH&PA has recorded extremely poor performance in several aspects including the reduction in house lot allocations since the APNU/AFC coalition Government took office despite the backlog of pending applicants and its “Housing Solutions 2017 and Beyond” project homes which persons have been refusing to occupy as they are reluctant to share the duplexes with other families.
There have also been major complaints by homeowners of structural defects such as leaking roofs, toilet facilities and flooring issues. The agency has also been unable to gain the confidence of financial institutions to invest in their initiatives which has added to their ineffectiveness and overall mediocre performance in the execution of its mandate.
