Manila now going after illegal boarding houses

After closing down 12 legitimate dormitories that have been found to have major deficiencies, the city government of Manila is now targeting an estimated 700 illegal boarding houses.

Louie Manimtim, overall head of Manila City Hall’s committee on dormitories, said a number of these erring establishments are residential homes that have been illegally operating as boarding houses.

"We will have a second round of inspections on illegitimate dormitories next week. Since these establishments are not registered and have no record with City Hall, we have coordinated with barangay officials of the six districts of Manila to identify those that are operating in their vicinity," Manimtim said.

There are about 230 registered dormitories and an estimated 700 illegal rooms being rented out in the city.

Majority of the defects found in the legitimate dorms were dilapidated structures, lack of fire exits, insufficient number of comfort rooms, poor ventilation, open live wires, dangling electrical wires and lack of fire hoses. There were also obstructions found on the hallways of some of the dormitories.

Manimtim said that apart from the violation of city regulations, the irresponsible disregard on the safety regulations could lead to bigger problems. "They can become fire traps or fire hazards."

Some of the establishments included in the second wave of inspections often accommodate tenants beyond the capacity of the structures. Many of them were built as residential units, but are being rented to people as a way to earn extra income.

Manimtim noted that building owners would squeeze in five persons in a room meant only for two.

"Kapag sobrang dami ng tao, the quality of living suffers. Madaming tao ang gagamit ng isang comfort room, ventilation is poor at ang mga gamit nila nakabalagbag sa hallway dahil wala nang space para sa gamit nila sa kwarto. Overloaded din ang kuryente and this could trigger a fire," he added.

The city government has been conducting dormitory inspections for the past five years.

An intensified campaign on dormitory inspection was launched following a Jan. 8 dormitory fire in Sampaloc that left eight tenants dead.

Majority of the dormitories are clustered in three areas in the city, namely those along Nicanor Reyes street (formerly Recto); San Marcelino and Taft Avenue; and inside the walled city of Intramuros.