Former housing minister Dr Roodal Moonilal is urging Government to consider giving flood victims a moratorium on the 2019 property tax.
He made the suggestion yesterday at a press conference at the Opposition Leader’s office in Port -of-Spain, as he raised several issues, including the ongoing war of words between himself and Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis over the Greenvale housing project in La Horquetta.
On Tuesday, Robinson-Regis denied claims by Moonilal that the People’s National Movement approved and built Greenvale Park on the floodplains of the Caroni River when Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley was housing minister.
Robinson-Regis said the designs and drawings were done under the PNM and an application had been made but never approved by the Town and Country Planning Division, resulting in the stalled project being built under Moonilal’s tenure as housing minister. But Moonilal denied these claims yesterday, saying when he took up office in 2010 the houses had already been constructed. He described Robinson-Regis’ claims as obscene.
Asked if he was willing to work with the Government to help the flood victims get back on their feet, Moonilal said: “The only time I would extend my hand to this Government is to push them out the front door.”
He said he wondered if Government’s three-month moratorium on mortgage and rental payments for Housing Development Corporations (HDC) homeowners was a suspension or waiver.
“Is it the HDC resident still has to pay for October, November and December? Or are you cancelling payments for the three months as their things have been destroyed in the flood and we will not take any payment for that?” he asked.
He also called for a moratorium or suspension of payments on next year’s property tax to flood victims who live outside of HDC settlements.
“I think the Government should strongly consider, in light of this disaster, a further moratorium or suspension of any plan to implement a property tax, at least to those persons who clearly have suffered the enormity of the damage from the floods. It may be unfair to say the entire country because some places did not have the damage...but certainly to the areas affected.”
He said the last word coming out of Parliament was that Government was going to make the necessary orders to exempt HDC tenants. Last week, the PM announced deferral of payments for HDC homeowners who were hit by the floods.
Government also offered a $15,000 grant to a family without children and $20,000 to families with children who were hit by floods. These affected families also received help from corporate T&T, church groups and Good Samaritans.
Finance Minister Colm Imbert did not responds to text messages seeking comment on Moonilal’s proposal.