Shantytown surveys are completed and the information is now in the hands of the Department of Statistics, according to Chairman of the Shantytown Committee, Labour Minister Dion Foulkes.
Mr.Foulkes who’s eyeing a possible May 9th deadline to have the report in hand, said he has some preliminary results, however, only about 80 per cent.
He said moving forward, public meetings are in order.
“Our next step is to do some public meetings especially in the Carmichael Road area.
“We intend to have two Town Hall meetings, one in the shantytowns themselves and another one for the subdivisions around the shantytowns, so we can tell everybody exactly what our timetable is, [and] what the notice period is in terms of for the residents to move,” Mr. Foulkes said.
A meeting is also planned with the Bahamian leaseholders of the land of the shantytowns to advise them and to have them take certain legal action.
As for the other family islands, Mr. Foulkes said Abaco in next in line.
“We intend to begin Abaco which is the fairly large areas, the Mudd and the Pigeon Pea, that will start the middle of this month,” he said.
In terms of eviction notices, Mr. Foulkes said that it is a matter for the Attorney General and the Ministry of Works.
There are 16 shantytown communities in New Providence alone.
