Belmonte bats for urban housing, land ownership

Speaker Sonny ‘SB’ Belmonte pointed to urban housing and land ownership as among his centerpiece programs to lift the poor’s quality of life should he win Quezon City’s mayoral post in May.

"We will not give up digging for ways and means so that poor families can be safe and happy in a decent home they can call their own," Belmonte declared as he recalled his successful efforts, as a three-term congressman of the Fourth District of Quezon City, to ease the pains of homeless people.

Belmonte recalled one concrete incident three years ago which proved his determination to help alleviate squatter families’ woes. He managed to convince a big landowner to dispose of his land, benefiting members of the Samahan ng mga Ina sa Barangay San Isidro in Galas.

The Speaker, who garnered an unprecedented 92 percent of the votes in his district in his third term as congressman, recalled to residents of Barangay Commonwealth that some 150 families living in a one-hectare lot in the barangay sought his help to convince the owner to sell his land.

Belmonte’s patience and determination paid off. Despite the complicated nature of the problem, he was able to persuade the owner, who happened to be a personal friend, to negotiate with the residents in coordination with Pag-Ibig Fund.

It took one year of relentless efforts by Belmonte before the members of the Samahan were able to buy the land on which their houses stood. "In fact, they now have titles to their lots."

"Hard work and teamwork is the key to success," Belmonte stressed as he urged Quezon City residents to support his Serbisyong Bayan (SB) Team, under the People Power Coalition (PPC) which include reelectionist Vice Mayor Connie Angeles, four congressional bets and 24 city council aspirants.

In the area of housing, the many programs of the "Serbisyong Bayan" of Belmonte include the Functional and Viable Residence (FVR) condominiums built in Quezon City's fourth district.

He also assisted residents of Guirayan street in Barangay Doña Imelda in negotiating for the acquisition of the land where they built a medium-sized condominium to solve the group’s housing problem. The residents were able to obtain a loan from the government’s Unified Home Lending Program at low interest rates to pay for their own units.