Coast guard readies office construction at Rotary Park

THE Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Iloilo district office is ready to start construction of its new office building within the abandoned Rotary Park at Fort San Pedro area.

Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog said PCG officials recently paid him a visit, asking for help in the ejection of 125 families of informal settlers occupying the area.

The more than one-hectare area at Fort San Pedro is subject for the issuance of a Presidential Proclamation by President Benigno Aquino III and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has recently submitted to Malacañang pertinent documents needed in the proclamation.

Mabilog said he is asking for a one-hectare area at the site for the construction of a modern passenger terminal building for commuters plying the Iloilo Strait between Iloilo City and Buenavista and Jordan Guimaras.

The area should also accommodate passenger sea vessels from Iloilo to Bacolod City and back, the city mayor said.

On the other hand, the Guimaras Iloilo Ferry Terminal (Gift) project funded by the Asian Development Bank seeks to enhance the ferry terminals in Iloilo and the municipal ports of Jordan and Buenavista, Guimaras.

The multi-million peso Gift project will also develop the Fort San Pedro area with a modern terminal building including a shopping mall and other passenger amenities.

Mabilog said the ejection of squatters will have to be under due process with notices sent to them to vacate.

The City Urban Poor Affairs Office (Icupao) reported that of the total 125 families of informal settlers, only 35 are qualified to be given relocation sites and the rest are transient settlers and registered residents of other provinces.