Where does Natasha Navas live and is she qualified to be mayor of Chaguanas?That's the question that outgoing deputy mayor of Chaguanas Orlando Nagassar is asking as the borough prepares to inaugurate Navas as its first female mayor in a lavish cerfemony partly funded by Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner.
Navas is listed as living at Nolan Street, Felicity. That gives her the residency qualification to hold the post.
But Nagessar is challenging that. He has pointed out that a mayoral candidate must have lived in the borough for at least two years, own property or have a business in the area.
He claims that Navas has failed that test. Nagassar said she does not live at Nolan Street, adding that electoral records show her address as Abalone Circular in the Lopinot/Bonaire area.
The Trinidad Guardian checked to see if Nagassar's claim is valid and reported in its Thursday edition that Chaguanas office of the electoral commission has no elector with the name Natasha Navas in either Chaguanas West or Chaguanas East.
Nagassar told the Guardian, “I am the representative for Felicity and I do not know Ms Navas...In fact, the residents of Nolan Street are asking me about her, since they, too, are in the dark.”
The Guardian tracked down a man who calls himself the unofficial mayor of Felicity. It quoted Bhimsingh “Beaks” Bholansingh as saying that Navas has lived in the area for the past two years at the Balkissoon Street home of her common-law husband, Robbie Katwaroo.
The paper said it talked with Katwaroo's mother who operates a parlour downstairs her house and the woman confirmed that Navas has lived at her home for the past two years.
Katwaroo, the paper said, explained that the part of Balkissoon Street where she lives was once called Nolan Street Extension.
Warner is not worried about the questions being raised. In an interview with the Trinidad Express he said he was careful to do his research on the matter and assured reporters that there are no obstacles to Navas taking office.
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