DWUP Chief: Dizon "wasting time, government resources"

CEBU, Philippines - Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP) Chief and lawyer Collin Rosell hit Councilor Alvin Dizon for commissioning an outsider to conduct the validation of urban poor beneficiaries due for contract signing without first consulting the urban poor office.

Rosell said Dizon insulted the DWUP by bypassing them because the validation of beneficiaries is within the mandate of the said office.

“Had they consulted this office before consulting an outsider, another round of validation is no longer necessary. He is just wasting time and wasting government resources,” Rosell said.

Rosell said there is nothing wrong with the master list. The DWUP shed light to all of the concerns raised by the council, he said.

Dizon, who is the chairman of the council’s committee on housing, asked the assistance of Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor for the conduct of the validation of the beneficiaries included in the master list of urban poor beneficiaries and due for contract signing submitted by DWUP.

In his letter last month to Chloe M. Osano, PCUP-7 Director, Dizon informed the latter that the committee on housing will be conducting a validation through public hearing to correct the alleged discrepancies found in the master list.

There are about 5,000 beneficiaries in the master lists prepared by DWUP. They are the first batch of urban poor beneficiaries who will finally have a contract to formalize their registration as qualified beneficiaries of the city’s various housing programs.

The contracts are necessary so the residents will be able to own the lot after full payment. In the past, many beneficiaries were denied lot ownership even after full payment because they do not have contracts with the city.

But Dizon said that the master list is inaccurate and not updated since some of the names are of dead persons.

Collin said that raising such question and coming up with a committee report without calling the DWUP office to explain is very disappointing and just shows that they need to be more familiar with the process.

He said that the master list contain names of the original beneficiaries awarded with the government lots.

The names of the dead persons will not hurt the city because they could no longer sign the contract.

He explained that the names of the dead persons cannot be replaced with just any living person but only their rightful heirs who may assume the properties granted by DWUP to their ancestors only if they are able to present proof that the beneficiary is dead and that they are the rightful heirs.

Rosell said that the master list that his office submitted to the council is the result of the validation conducted by DWUP personnel who are working even on weekends for such purpose.

He said that despite the council’s refusal to allow him to hire 40 job order workers for this project, they did not give up and still conducted the validation because they are mandated by the ordinance.

“PCUP will still coordinate with us so it is just a waste of time. They are just further delaying the contracts that are due to these urban poor beneficiaries long time ago,” Rosell said.

Besides, Rosell said, the public hearing cannot validate the list and they will still go back to the DWUP whose records will prevail. – (FREEMAN)