Dear Editor,
Four farming households in Tucker Valley are now facing sudden eviction notices from the Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA). Despite holding long-standing, undisputed occupancy and contributing to the local agricultural sector for nearly two decades with some of us tending this soil for over 25 years our livelihoods are being erased without due process or basic human decency.
What makes this situation especially painful is the complete absence of proper consultation. No board member visited our plots. No serious discussions were held to evaluate our tenure. No effort was made to understand the lives that this sudden displacement will destroy.
These are not abandoned parcels of land they are thriving, working farms. We cultivate acres of plantain, pumpkins, cassava, pawpaw, limes, and sugar cane. Our produce directly feeds local communities and supplies businesses across West Bees, Long Circular Mall, St Lucien Road, and the wider Tucker Valley area.
Among those currently facing the threat of homelessness and loss of income are elderly women, children, and agricultural workers. One farmer is currently seven months pregnant with twins. Another household comprises multiple farmers working cooperatively just to survive. Some of us live without running water, using the forest as an outhouse, yet we have spent decades protecting and maintaining this land while actively contributing to the nation’s food security.
We have invested heavily into developing these plots entirely out of our own pockets. We paid for tractors, backhoes, irrigation systems, land clearing, and continuous crop cultivation. We have stepped up as stewards of the environment, extinguishing bush fires and caring for abandoned stray animals. Yet today, we are being summarily dismissed, treated as though our investments and our very existence do not matter.
This aggressive approach leaves many troubling questions unanswered.
Why were long-standing farmers excluded from the farmers’ association that the CDA appears to rely upon for its decision-making?
How can individuals with no active cultivation reportedly be considered for legal land access, while active farmers with bearing crops are targeted for immediate removal?
Furthermore, why have our repeated requests for meetings been entirely ignored, leaving us without a single opportunity to formally present our case or discuss regularization?
This crisis was severely exacerbated following the death of long-time farmer Moses in July 2025. Since his passing, disputes and allegations surrounding the control of these lands have emerged. Rather than investigating these matters fairly, the resulting actions have left legitimate farmers feeling vulnerable, unheard, and unfairly targeted by the very authorities meant to oversee the region’s development.
This issue is about much more than land. It is about dignity, due process, and humanity. We are hardworking citizens of Trinidad and Tobago who wake before sunrise to feed our communities and support our families through honest labour.
We appeal directly to the Prime Minister, the Minister of Agriculture, and the CDA board to urgently intervene. We ask that all eviction proceedings be halted immediately until a proper review, transparent dialogue, and fair negotiations for regularization or compensation can take place.
Surely, the principles of fairness and equality must apply to all citizens, especially the people who work the soil to feed this country.
Concerned Farmers of Tucker Valley
