Govt’s double standard

Housing took centre stage during the Estimates debate earlier this week and it came soon after Government announced an impending auction against landowners who are in arrears on taxes on their properties.

It did not escape attention that Government is also delinquent in making compensation to property owners whose properties have been compulsorily acquired, ostensibly for a public purpose in accordance with the Land Acquisition Act.

Unfortunately, landowners have little recourse in such situations and remain at the mercy of Government to get payment for their properties which sometimes takes many years. This is an untenable situation, as people are deprived of their properties without compensation and for which, invariably, they had paid taxes.

This is a double standard and it skirts expropriation when property is taken without compensation and collides with the constitutional provision with respect to the property rights.

Minister of Housing, Lands and Maintenance Dwight Sutherland said Tuesday that Government was grappling with a more than $300 million backlog in compensation owed to landowners whose properties were compulsorily acquired for public projects, with disputes over valuations and administrative hurdles causing years of delays in payouts.

He said that while Government has made payments over the last three years, many landowners remain in limbo. This issue has been a long-standing frustration for property owners who have lost land to public projects but have waited years, even decades for compensation.

Sutherland told Parliament that while some progress has been made, with more than $100 million paid to at least three landowners, many cases remain unresolved.

“This administration is seeking to address over $300 million in compensation. We have started that process,” he said, adding that efforts are ongoing to settle outstanding payments.

The minister also said “compensation has been a major challenge. The problem occurs when someone’s land is acquired and the value from the Barbados Revenue Authority and the Land Tax Department is lower than the owner’s. Many landowners are unwilling to accept the offer”.

This begs the question because if you are acquiring someone’s property the price should be agreed before acquisition. There should be some discussion and agreement with respect to the price in accordance with the owner’s constitutional protection.

This lack of prompt compensation to property owners has been a problem for many years and it makes no sense seeking to politicise this unfortunate state of affairs by apportioning blame. It is shocking that Government owes more than $300 million to these people.

What is perhaps even more disconcerting is that these sums probably do not form part of the national debt or the contingent liabilities of Government.

The assurance that efforts are ongoing to resolve the issue is but cold comfort to many families; some of whose members have gone to the great beyond.

The lesson here is that Government can be indebted to you but you cannot owe Government. When it is considered that these payments go back over many decades, the double standard is clearly seen.

Owners’ properties are auctioned off for payment of outstanding land taxes yet Government owes large sums of money for properties compulsorily acquired for public purposes and has not paid them.

It is unlikely interest will be paid on these sums unless ordered by the court.

Everybody craves for equity, fairness and transparency but this trend by Government to auction properties for outstanding taxes needs a careful review in light of the fact that Government has not paid for properties compulsorily acquired.