Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz & Lorenz S. Marasigan
The leadership of the House of Representatives announced on Tuesday that the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) had agreed to donate a parcel of land to squatter residents who are expected to be affected by the rehabilitation of Manila Bay.
During an oversight committee hearing at the Rosauro Arboleda Elementary School in Zaragoza, Tondo, House Committee on Housing and Urban Development Chairman Alfredo Benitez said a memorandum of understanding (MOU) has been signed between the PPA and the National Housing Authority (NHA).
Under the MOU, Benitez said, a 5-hectare PPA property in Tondo has been allotted for the occupancy of more than 2,000 squatter families that inhabit the Isla Puting Bato off Manila Bay.
The PPA, through its General Manager Jay Daniel R. Santiago, confirmed the signing of the MOU not only with the NHA but also with the local government of Manila for the turnover of the relocation site, an area near the country’s premier seaport, the Manila International Container Terminal.
“We will concretize the agreement and arrangement for the relocation of approximately 2,086 informal settler families situated at Isla Puting Bato,” Santiago said.
He added that the PPA will work with the NHA, the Manila North Harbor Container Port Inc. and the International Container Terminal Services Inc. to “construct housing facilities on that 5-hectare property.”
Santiago was referring to a government-owned property near the North Harbor in Manila.
Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade lauded the PPA’s move to free up space in the port. However, the move might present some challenges since part of the 5-hectare land is a portion owned by the Philippine National Railways (PNR).
“The beauty behind this announcement is that I will be talking to the management of the PNR to resolve the 1,000-square-meter issue and balance it out,” he said.
For his part, PNR General Manager Junn Magno had “committed to donate 1,064 square meters of land for the informal settlers.”
The MOU likewise justified the need to remove, relocate and resettle squatter dwellers not only within the Isla Puting Bato area but also its surrounding areas.
Benitez added the NHA will identity the qualified recipients, while the City of Manila will help in the implementation of the project.
The NHA, he said, will conduct tagging and census activities to identify the qualified structure owners and non-structure owners at Isla Puting Bato and peripheral areas.
The MOU also provides a budget for the clearing operations of the occupied areas and the site, as well as for the construction of low-rise buildings.
According to Benitez, the PPA has donated some P1 billion for the relocation project.
Under the agreement, the City of Manila will provide support and assistance in the implementation of the clearing operations, relocation and resettlement of the informal settlers.
The housing allocation came after House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo called for a hearing of the Oversight Committee on Housing to address the delay in the release of titles to the recipients of urban poor housing proclamations she issued when she was president.
During her term, Arroyo issued Proclamations 96, 518 and 825 and Executive Order 108 for the purpose of providing socialized housing sites to actual occupants in Parola, Tondo, and Binondo, both in Manila.
During the hearing it was revealed that more than 2,000 families living in a property owned by PPA will be displaced because of the ongoing rehabilitation of Manila Bay.
Isla Puting Bato Barangay Chairman Bryan Mondejar said the thousands of residents are worried about their condition for years, especially with the Manila Bay cleanup and had decided to come to the hearing to bring to the attention to Arroyo about their condition.
The hearing was attended by Tugade, Sen. Cynthia Villar, chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, former President and Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, Manila Rep. Manuel Lopez and heads of the NHA, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council and PPA.