Delay seen in construction of Tejero drainage project

CEBU, Philippines -  The construction of a government drainage project at Sitio Laurente in Barangay Tejero might be delayed because the owners of houses that will be affected by the said project stopped demolishing their structures.

Tejero Barangay Councilman Garry Lao said the concerned residents stopped destroying their houses because they did not believe anymore that the city is serious in giving them relocation sites that they could own in the future.

Both Collin Rosell, head of the Division for the Welfare of Urban Poor (DWUP) and Raquel Arce, acting head of the City Hall’s demolition team, assured the owners of six houses that each of them will be provided with relocation sites just within the area.

Rosell explained that the relocation site is a public-owned lot that can be availed by them through the newly-enacted Free Patent Act, which allows the actual occupant of a government-owned lot to own the property by just paying P250 for the processing of their documents.

But Lao explained that such property cannot be owned by the said families because the law provides that the applicants who wish to own the lot through the Free Patent Act should be the actual occupants of the lots.

“Unsaon man intawon nila pag-avail og relocation nga ang dapit nga giingong ilang balhinan duna na may nagpuyo? (How can they avail of relocation when the place where they want to relocate is also occupied by somebody else?” Lao asked.

Four of the six house owners have started removing portions of their houses but they stopped when the barangay officials informed them that the relocation site is not definite yet.

There is a vacant space at the said public-owned lot but it can only accommodate two to three houses which is why Arce said the first to demolish their houses will be the ones who may avail of the relocation site within the barangay.

Arce, head of the Prevention Restoration Order and Beautification Enhancement (PROBE), said those families that cannot be accommodated at the small vacant space in Barangay Tejero will be provided with space in other relocation sites of the city.

The two City Hall officials also assured the affected residents that each of them will be given cash assistance amounting to P10,000.

“Nagsigi na gani sila’g pa-ngutana hain na ang cash assistance og ako silang giingnan nga dili na madali-dali sa pag-release. (They are already asking about their cash assistance and I told them that will not be released immediately),” Lao explained.

According to Arce, Mayor Michael Rama’s orders for the area to be cleared so that the drainage project can be implemented had already lapsed last December 24, but City Hall just gave the concerned families a few more days’ extension.

Arce said if the concerned residents will not voluntarily destroy their houses, they will be the ones to do it. —MIT (FREEMAN)