Tuesday, July 10, 2007 City squatters willing to live in new gov’t center By Gil Alfredo B. Severino
KALIPUNAN ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay-Negros) and affiliate organizations of urban poor appealed to Mayor Evelio Leonardia that in the event of demolition, they are willing to dwell inside the new government center.
This was the joint statement of residents from various barangays under the umbrella organization of Kadamay-Negros who gathered Monday at Purok Nami-Nami, Barangay Banago to condemn the City’s 10-year Comprehensive Land Use Development Program
(CLUDP).
In an interviewy, Kadamay-Negros spokesperson said the gradual and piece-by-piece demolition conducted by the city authorities.
Vice Mayor Jude Thaddeus Sayson who used to chair the City Council Committee on Housing during his stint as councilor, explained that there is sufficiency of the law in caring for the homeless and this include even the illegal residents.
He explained, “In the case of Purok Nami-Nami, it was declared by the Department of Waterworks and Highways (DPWH) as ‘danger zone’. Nevertheless, by law, DPWH is required to prepare relocation cites before serving writs of execution and demolition.”
“Also, being government-owned land, Executive Order 152 provides that DPWH must pass the requirements of the Presidential Commission for Urban Poor (PCUP).
There are instances where PCUP does not easily give clearance to a government agency. Hopefully, Kadamay-Negros would check into this. Sayson stressed that the city has no jurisdiction over areas covered by DPWH, usually areas near inland rivers.
Sayson added, as to the areas where the city has jurisdiction, there are options that the homeless can avail under the law, saying, “If the land occupied by squatters is titled and the owner agrees that the squatters can avail of the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) of the National Housing Authority (NHA) where the National Housing Mortgage Fund (NHMF) will finance.”
“If squatters occupy government lands, then, the city must seek clearance from PCUP as provided by E.O. 152 before any demolition can be implemented,” he said.
In all cases, the preparation of a relocation cite is a must before a demolition can be implemented and that illegal residents have all the rights to go to court, Sayson added.
“When the court comes in, it has a set of requirements for the squatters to avail before demolition can be implemented, giving time for squatters to resettle,” he said, adding, “For as long as the squatter is qualified, options and time to resettle are available.”
Resettlement areas may not be ideal at the start but presently the city does not stop developing the Abada-Escay area also as a relocation site, he said.
