28 September, 2023, 2:37 am Central - 21°C Rain

There are many people like the residents of Veiraisi Settlement, they can apply to PRB for housing – Sayed-Khaiyum
Evicted families call for government assistance

There are many people like the residents of Veiraisi Settlement, they can apply to PRB for housing – Sayed-Khaiyum

Evicted families call for government assistance

By Vijay Narayan , Navitalai Naivalurua , Alipate Narawa
Wednesday 19/10/2022
Veiraisi Settlement in Nadera

As the evicted families from Veiraisi Settlement in Nadera call for the government to assist, FijiFirst General Secretary, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says there are many people like the residents of Veiraisi Settlement, and they can apply to the Public Rental Board for housing.

Sayed-Khaiyum was responding to us in the FijiFirst press conference when Legend FM News questioned him if the Government will assist these families because they have said they have nowhere else to go.

The residents of Veiraisi Settlement have even more to worry about now apart from their houses getting dismantled and their belongings getting wet in the rain, and that is youths stealing their items at night.

Eseta Rokoniu and her family had their house dismantled last Wednesday and since then her husband has covered their house materials with a tarpaulin under which he has stayed to guard their belongings every night.

She says this is because after one of their community meetings the other night, they found out that some youths were asking other residents at the other end of the settlement if they wanted to buy roofing iron and wood that they would sell to them for cheap.

Rokoniu has moved her seven children and some of their belongings to her uncle’s place nearby but she says the reality is they have nowhere to go after they received the court eviction order.

Inise Rinasau who is Eseta’s sister says that some of the residents of Veiraisi Settlement are not going to work right now because they are worried about their houses being demolished and their belongings getting wet.

The 21 families of Veiraisi Settlement who were included in the court order to have their houses taken down are asking the government of the day and the Nasinu Land Purchase and Housing Co-operative Society Limited, where they can move to.

Nasinu Land Purchase is saying that it is in the court’s hands and it will not make any further comments.

In a statement released by the Government, they stated the land in Veiraisi that has become the subject of recent news reporting is not under the Ministry of Housing and Community Development’s lease as it is freehold land that is owned by Nasinu Land Purchase.

They say the recent eviction notices served by the freehold landowner to individuals in Veiraisi were lawfully issued in line with a court order.

The statement says this was after certain individuals residing on the land in question had opted not to move to an alternative arrangement proposed by the landowner.

The Government says the Nasinu Land and Purchase first offered all settlers in Veiraisi the opportunity to move to an alternative area in 2018 and most families accepted this offer to relocate.

They say since that time, the matter has been heard in court and the owner of the freehold land was entitled to evict any individuals residing on the land in question, as per the recently issued court order.

To buy additional time, the Ministry then negotiated another six months with the landowner to allow the individuals residing on the land to move.

They say legally, the government can only serve as a mediator between squatters and freehold landowners.

Director Housing Ronit Sen says they had several meetings with the landowner and the representatives of the affected families since the court order was issued and have secured as much additional time as possible for them to find alternative housing.

Sen says during that time, government conducted a survey and considered temporary accommodation in Public Rental Board flats, however, some families reported exceedingly large household sizes that could not fit into PRB flats.

He says it has been clear for more than four years that the families would have to eventually move out as this is a freehold land.

He says after they secured an additional six-month window for alternative arrangements to be made, the court order now must be respected.

They say there are over 250 informal settlements around Fiji and the Ministry is working with both Ministry of Lands and iTaukei Land Trust Board to acquire and upgrade these settlements over time to provide secured land tenure to the settlers.

The Ministry currently has 46 development leases under its upgrade Programme and three are now upgraded and ready for formalization.

Another 12 settlements are ready to commence upgrade works in this financial year with close to $10 million allocated in the 2022-23 National Budget for these works.


2022-2023 Budget Coverage



-->


fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan
Latest Videos

Stay tuned for the latest news on our radio stations

CFL radio frequencies
FEATURE NEWS
EbayShop recruitment scam - 1700 complaints valued at around $3.6 million received so far
The total of number complaints received regarding the EbayShop recruitment scam by the Consumer Council of Fiji, Fijian Competition and Consumer Commi...
4 hours ago
LATEST NEWS
Urgent call for increased crime-prevention measures and patrols following increasing reports of break-ins at Bureta St and Levuka St in Samabula and Lami
An urgent call for increased crime-prevention measures and police patrols is being made by residents of Bureta Street and Levuka Street in Samabula ...
9 hours ago

“Violence Against Children In Fiji” report says opportunity and security are key drivers of child abuse
The recent launch of the “Violence Against Children In Fiji” report states that drivers of violence against children are a combination of factors ...
9 hours ago

Senior NFP member Priscilla Singh disagrees with the proposed Local Government Electoral Act
Senior National Federation Party member and former councillor of the Suva City Council, Priscilla Singh says she stands with her party on ...
10 hours ago

$250,000 refurbished Makoi Health Centre commissioned
About 32,000 people now have access to an improved health facility as the new waiting area and refurbished Makoi Health Centre has been ...
11 hours ago

70% of domestic violence cases occur in iTaukei families and 74% are in Christian families - Tabuya
Ten communities in the province of Tailevu have made a promise to protect women, girls and children from violence after they signed their commitment ...
11 hours ago
IN DEPTH
EBayShop Online Recruitment scam
The Consumer Council of Fiji has issued a public alert about a group of individuals running a deceptive pyramid scheme known as “EbayShop Online Recruitment.”
3 days ago

7 Grace Road Group executives declared prohibited immigrants in Fiji after decisions by the South Korean Government and a request by Interpol
7 Grace Road executives in Fiji have been declared prohibited immigrants by the Fijian Government, it has been made clear through government ...
3 days ago

Bainimarama and Qiliho’s trial
The trial of former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended Commissioner of Police Sitiveni Qiliho begins
41 days ago

TOP