Investigate NHC officials in Lae

THERE are rumors among communities in Lae that officials at the National Housing Corporation (NHC) are being paid huge amounts of money, especially by businessmen, seeking State land that are already occupied by tenants.
The NHC officials have even gone to the extent of allocating parcels of land which are designated as drainage reserves to these businessmen who in turn have now started illegally developing them without proper approvals by the relevant authorities in the city.
When questioned by the authorities as to why they are making such illegal developments on these drainage reserves, they said they had paid for the lands from the NHC office in Lae and that the land is part of the urban development lease (UDL) belonging to the NHC!
In the last 25 years or so, according to the Lands Department records, there has never been any UDL granted to the NHC, nor to any private developers.
In as far as records indicate, NHC UDL’s were only granted for the urban settlement areas at China Town, Seventh street, Omili suburb, East and West Taraka suburbs, Buimo Road, Boundary Road and 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6-Mile for low and medium cost housing development, in the late 1970’s and 1980’s.
The Housing and Urban Development Minister Justin Tkatchenko’ told Parliament on Sept 15 last year that NHC was a “failed, insolvent and non performing entity”.
This is a clear testament of such attitudes and malpractices that is being entertained by NHC officials in Lae and they should be investigated.
The public on the other hand should stop bribing government officials.
The public should obtain information and advice from them in honest and transparent ways, instead of paying officials with lunch money.

Concerned Citizen