93% of Jusmag settlers opt for relocation

MANILA, Philippines - The state-owned Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) said 277 families occupying the BCDA property in JUSMAG have applied to voluntarily vacate the area and avail of the relocation program being offered by the BCDA.

BCDA president and CEO Arnel Paciano D. Casanova said the 277 families represent 93 percent of the 299 informal settler families who are occupying some 10 hectares of the 35.5-hectare JUSMAG Area owned by the BCDA.

According to Casanova, out of 277 families who applied, 198 families have voluntarily vacated the area with a total of 107 families opting for outright cash while 69 families chose to relocate in the National Housing Authority (NHA) relocation site in Rodriguez, Rizal. Twenty families were disqualified but opted to voluntarily dismantle their structures while two families are still resolving issues.

Twenty-one of the 277 families, representing seven percent, did not apply for the relocation program. In a dialogue with the informal settlers last July 26, 2012, the BCDA, led by business development vice president Dean Santiago appealed to the residents to avail of the relocation program being offered.

 “The relocation program presented to the informal settlers is considered one of the best relocation programs so far offered to informal settlers,” he said.

The relocation package consists of cash equivalent to the value of their respective houses as assessed by the Taguig City assessor’s office, plus a cash incentive which the resettlers can use as start-up capital for any livelihood project they may set up in their new community.

The new community in Rodriguez, Rizal, is an ideal resettlement site for the informal settlers. The relocation site is complete with utilities and amenities, and is near schools, churches, and a nearby market and hospital in the community.

The relocation project has been coordinated with the members of the Local Inter-Agency Committee (LIAC) composed of the Local Government of Taguig, Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor, Commission on Human Rights, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, National Housing Authority, People’s Organizations, the Office of the Barangay Chairman of Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City and the Office of the Barangay Chairman of Southside, Makati City.

Casanova said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will get a big chunk of the proceeds from the disposition of the area. The funds are earmarked to bankroll the military’s modernization program. To date, the BCDA has generated P54.48 billion from the sale, lease and joint venture development of various former Metro Manila camps the biggest two of which are the former Fort Bonifacio now Bonifacio Global City and a portion of the Villamor Air Base now known as Newport City. Of this amount P21.78 billion went to the AFP.