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Friday, May 06, 2005
Families in Miller estate to get own lots
By Dante M. Fabian
ANGELES CITY — Poor families living on the Miller Estate in Baliti, Sapangbato here will soon own the lots their houses are built on even without expropriation proceedings.
This developed as the owner, Elena B. Miller, said there is no need to burden the City Government with expropriating and transferring the ownership of the lots to the residents.
Councilor Danilo Lacson earlier proposed the expropriation of the estate for redistribution to its occupants under Mayor Carmelo “Tarzan” Lazatin’s urban poor program.
Miller however hopes of moving some of the houses to open up space for her house in the residential area in her land.
It was learned that informal settlers on the estate, numbering about 50 families, include both indigent families and several families who are well to do. Some are even millionaires.
Miller told reporters here that she has long decided to give the lots to the residents and is willing to have these officially transferred to their names soon.
She also promised that she will shoulder all the expenses necessary to complete the transfer of titles to the poor occupants, most of whom evacuated to her property after the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991.
Miller said she will initiate the transfer of the lots to the poor families occupying portions of the land she acquired from the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).
Roxanne Gautane, Miller’s niece, said her aunt is keen on giving out portions of the land to deserving poor families.
Gautane said the owner has been paying P60,000 annually in real property taxes since she purchased the property in 1985.
She added that most of the settlers were accepted to move into the estate in 1991 upon the request of local officials.
Since then, she added, the residents and Miller have been in very good terms since the land owner has been very generous and helpful to the residents whenever they approached her for their needs or when they are badly in need of treatment for their sick children or spouses.
Gautane said Miller does not collect rent from the occupants although they have built their houses on the lots.
According to her, only a few or about 15 families have been paying real property taxes to the city treasurer although these are only for the houses and not for the land.
She said the present claims on the property along with the complaints brought to the City Council and other government agencies began in 2000 after the death of Miller’s husband.
(May 6, 2005 issue)
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