Black Immigrant Daily News

With the passage of the Condominium Bill 2022, owners of duplexes in Perseverance, East Bank Demerara (EBD) could begin applying for their ownership documents for their properties by the end of the year.

Minister of Housing and Water Collin Croal said regulations under the Condominium Bill are being gazetted, while the administrative aspect between the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) and the Land Registry is being developed.

The duplexes were constructed by the APNU+AFC coalition Administration which failed to implement the relevant legislation that guides the regulation of such structures.

This was corrected by the PPP/C Administration in 2022 with the passage of a ‘modern’ Condominium Bill which supports the development of such units.

“The duplexes could not be recognised until we’re able to process it through the Condominium Act because it’s shared space and that’s what the Condo Act caters for. So, very shortly, they will be sorted out under the Act… that’s part of our programme for this year,” the Minister is reported by DPI as saying in an interview.

The Minister said another issue hampering the issuance of titled documents for the 42 structures, is ownership of the area where the units were constructed. There were also issues with surveys and the recognition of the name and where it falls.

“The land where those structures are located, there were challenges regarding the ownership of the areas, it was not legally owned by CHPA,” he explained.

The Minister assured that “very shortly they will be sorted out under the Act. Likewise, the area we are getting to the stage to recognise there.”

The Condominium Bill passed in the National Assembly back in May, has paved the way for the construction of condominiums and the conversion of existing buildings into units for individual ownership.

Since the passage of the legislation, the Housing Ministry has received over 70 Expressions of Interest (EoI) for the construction of condominiums and town houses here.

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The Mental Health Rehabilitation Centre is appealing for the support of the public, as the Centre implements a project to re-integrate mental health patients back into the society.

Senior Nursing Officer at the Centre, Dr. Elizabeth Medford said the project is part of a wider thrust to integrate mental health services into primary health care.

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Dr. Medford said the Centre would provide training for persons  who are willing to establish support groups for mental health patients who are being re-integrated into the society.

https://www.nbcsvg.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/MEDFORD-MENTAL-HEALTH-1.mp3

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Health Ministry congratulates Nurse Dupie-Winston on Nurses of the Year Award:

The Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment would like to congratulate Nurse Soria Dupie-Winston on receiving the Caribbean Nurse of the Year Award at the 32nd Biennial Caribbean Nurses Conference held in Jamaica.

Nurse Dupie-Winston, who is currently stationed at the Ministry of Health Headquarters as a Nurse Epidemiologist is one of eight Nurses who received the award this year.

The other recipients of the award were from Anguilla, Jamaica, Barbados, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago.

Dupie-Winston, who is also the President of the Antigua and Barbuda Nurses Association was among a 12-member delegation that represented the twin island state during the conference from October 8-15, 2022.

Minister of Health, Wellness and the Environment, the honorable Sir Molwyn Joseph as well as the Management and staff at the Ministry congratulate Nurse Dupie-Winston on receiving this prestigious award in recognition of her hard work and dedication throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

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A Carenage man was gunned down on Wednesday night.

Initial police reports say, at about 11 pm residents of Abbe Poujade Street heard gunshots and later found the body of Victor “Hard Lash” Mills on the road.

Police have not yet ascertained a motive for his killing.

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The High Court has ruled in favor of ExxonMobil, through subsidiary Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), being granted leave to join a case brought by two Guyanese citizens against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding the oil company’s exploration activities.

The two citizens, Danuta Radzik and Sinikka Henry, had moved to the High Court seeking orders to quash EPA’s decision to renew ExxonMobil’s environmental permit for its Liza Phase 1 operations.

“The applicants allege that the permit is unlawful as Esso had not done a new Environmental Impact Assessment before being granted the renewal of the permit. They are, therefore, claiming orders to quash the issue of the permit and to prohibit the renewal of the permit without Esso doing a new EIA,” a case brief explained.

“The applicants also seek an order closing Esso’s Liza Phase 1 petroleum operations immediately. The EPA’s defence is that the law does not require a new EIA to be done, as one has already been done when the permit was originally issued and it would, therefore, be superfluous to require a new EIA to be done every time a permit is renewed, although a previous one had been done.”

Despite the claimants seeking orders that would have a detrimental impact on Exxon, the oil company was not named as a party in the case. According to Exxon, this is only the latest such case, where proceedings have been filed that would impact it, but it has not been made a party to defend itself.

“Esso has had to file proceedings to be made a party on each occasion and on every occasion, the High Court has agreed that it has a sufficient interest to justify this,” it was explained in the case brief. As such, Exxon had filed a Notice of Application to be added to the case. Arguments were heard on October 12.

On October 17, High Court Judge Damone Younge ruled that Exxon, as the holder of the permit and thus liable to suffer financial loss, should be added to the case as a party to the matter with sufficient interest.

“Her Honour ordered that Esso be made a party and that the papers be amended to reflect this and served on Esso. Esso has been given 14 days to file and serve its Affidavit in Defence, and the matter is now adjourned to 12th January, 2023. Her Honour also ordered that Esso is not to recover costs against Radzik and Henry if their application is refused,” the case brief stated.

EEPGL is being represented by Attorneys-at-Law Andrew Pollard, SC; Edward Luckhoo, SC; Eleanor Luckhoo and Ashley Henry. Meanwhile, Radzik and Henry are being represented by international lawyer and activist Melinda Janki and Abiola Wong-Inniss. The EPA is represented by Frances Carryl. Back in May, the EPA had renewed the Environmental Permit for the Liza Phase 1 Project within the Stabroek Block, offshore Guyana, for another period of five years. The permit strictly prohibits routine flaring and venting, and specifies that flaring is only permissible during commissioning, start-up, and special circumstances.The Stabroek Block is 6.6 million acres (26,800 square kilometres). Exxon, through EEPGL, is the operator and holds 45 per cent interest in the block. Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd holds 30 per cent interest and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CNOOC Limited, holds the remaining 25 per cent interest.

The company is currently undertaking four production projects – Liza 1, Liza 2, Payara, and Yellowtail in the oil-rich block. It is estimated that when the Yellowtail development project comes on stream, production will climb to 810,000 barrels per day (bpd) by 2027. The US oil major anticipates at least six FPSOs in operation by 2030.

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