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Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Osmeña: The need for urban renewal
By Antonio V. Osmeña
Estatements
The squatters on the real estate properties of the Province of Cebu in urban centers in the cities of Cebu and Mandaue should be considered a “group” problem, which must be jointly addressed by Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, Cebu City Mayor Tom Osmeña and Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano to ensure the health and safety of the concerned communities.
These squatters put up shanties without consideration for access roads, which, in the process, compromise their safety and health. The only access in communities that can be found on the Provincial Government’s properties in Cebu City, which have an aggregate are of 43 hectares, are pathways.
The negligence of the past provincial leadership in allowing provincial lots to be squatted on is now the full responsibility of the present administration. This is why the Province of Cebu, instead of spending millions of pesos in the construction of a mega dome convention center, should allot the money for a provincial urban redevelopment program.
Our politicians should consider these provincial lot occupants as a community of Cebuanos in need of adequate shelter.
Whether these occupants are city voters and not members of the Province’s electorate, Governor Garcia should recognize that shelter is essential to human welfare.
To recall, the original occupants of the provincial lot in Barrio Luz were squatters relocated from the province-owned railway track. The relocation was hastily done without any development program for the relocated occupants.
Unfortunately, private and public lots in Cebu City, among other urban centers, have the most number of illegal squatters.
In the late 1940s, the failure of the government to provide decent shelter forced people to put up temporary shanties that eventually became permanent because of the complacent attitude of our government leaders — in particular, political leaders in Cebu City — toward housing.
After six decades, we still have the same political attitude towards these helpless lot occupants. To illustrate, both the Cebu City Council and the Cebu Provincial Board have failed to introduce an ordinance for public housing of low-income families through the Home Guaranty Corp.
Some critics have also asked where are the pro-poor politicians and pro-poor organizations, such as the leftists, rightists and religious groups that should be lobbying for slum clearance and redevelopment program.
The creation of an Urban Renewal Administration (URA) is necessary to assist those who have been occupying private and public lands for many decades and have no hope of having a decent shelter. This is also intended not only to eliminate existing slums but also to prevent potential slums.
There are thousands of families who are classified as squatter-lessee occupying private properties. The Urban Renewal Services, through URA, may obtain technical and other professional aid for the preparation of redevelopment of the site occupied by the squatter-lessees.
Governor Garcia need to have the political will to introduce the right infrastructure, such as a standard road network, storm drainage, water and electric utility and sewerage systems for the safety and health of the occupants.
Some of occupants, however, will have to be relocated to satisfy the minimum road width network and the subdivided lots arrangement. Let’s subdivide these lots that are occupied by squatters accordingly for the inhabitants’ safety and health.
Perhaps, these occupants can be made to pay the cost of the lot according to their income since many of these squatters have become affluent.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (April 5, 2006 issue)
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