Farmers’ Association head slams government for bulldozing Diego Martin crops

FARMERS Association head Shiraz Khan has slammed the government for bulldozing crops to make way for phase two of the Diego Martin Sporting Complex.

Speaking at a People’s Roundtable press conference on its crime summit, Khan criticised the move, saying the police always complain about a lack of resources but were somehow able to have scores present during the September 3 eviction.

“You don’t have police to secure people doing business in the market. You don’t have people to police people robbing people in Carlsen Field. You don’t have police to go in Chaguanas when they’re robbing vendors.

“But you have police to put in Diego Martin yesterday to bulldoze fr—–g crops. Tell me what what really going on in this country?

“So you don’t have the police resource to deal with this present (crime) situation, but to go and protect something that people making a living (from) – and you just set up a committee just a week and a half ago to talk about food security, to talk to how to look into it –but you are destroying acres of produce that could have been feeding this country – for what?

“Election is coming up. You want to put a…stadium there? It may not finish for…let’s say 15 months, but you’re going to do it to win votes.”

The Urban Development Corporation of TT (Udecott) moved to seize the lands, which farmers claim to have been occupying for at least 50 years.

A release from the company said three farmers were illegally occupying the land. It said talks began in 2020 and continued in 2024 on compensating them for their produce, which was evaluated, and have them relocated. It said one farmer accepted and the other two refused.

One of the farmers who refused told Newsday the land being offered in Tucker Valley must be in a similar or better condition than that in Diego Martin for them to consider accepting the offer. The farmer said the land needed to be cleared and have paved roads and utilities.

Udecott said the farmers were demanding an unreasonable payment of $1.1 million and the Commissioner of State Lands served them with a notice to vacate the premises.

The farmer said several beds of produce were destroyed in the repossession before the Udecott team decided to allow the farmers to return on September 4 and 5 to reap whatever produce remained.

Convenor of the People’s Roundtable David Abdulah also expressed disappointment at the way Heritage Petroleum Company Ltd treated a chicken farmer in Lowkie Trace, Penal. According to media reports, masked gunmen claiming to be representing the company visited his farm in an unmarked SUV and instructed him to sell off his chickens and demolish the pens, as they were built on the company’s property. He claimed he was never shown an eviction notice or any identification.

A Heritage release further said the farmer’s occupation of the land posed a safety risk because of nearby installations.

However, Abdulah said the company was wrong in its handling of the issue.

“Here you now have people who are trying to make an honest, decent living growing food that is essential to national well-being, etcetera, etcetera… now be attacked in terms of their livelihoods by state agencies.

“Something has to be wrong with that. Assuming that there’s an issue of safety, which we will investigate more, there are ways to deal with those matters.”

He said this sends the wrong message to the youth.

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