Noy asked to stop eviction of 500,000 informal settlers in Laguna Lake

MANILA, Philippines - Laguna Lake fisherfolk belonging to the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamama­lakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamala­kaya) yesterday urged President Aquino to put off the planned eviction of 100,000 families or about 500,000 informal settlers in the lake to allow the construction of a road dike.

Heavy siltation and indiscriminate construction of structures in the Laguna de Bay plain have caused massive flooding in the area.

“President Aquino should reject this stupid proposal from the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Laguna Lake Development Authority to remove over 500,000 people from the lake to pave the way for the construction of a road dike that would cover almost 75 percent of the lake from Taytay in Rizal en route to all lake towns in Laguna,” Pamala­kaya national chairman Fernando Hicap said in a press statement.

Hicap said the affected fishermen want to stay near the lake because it is the source of their livelihood.

“If Mr. Aquino is really stubborn and hell-bent in pursuing this anti-people development program under the Public-Private Partnership regime, then the Laguna Lake folk have no choice but to rally their way to Malacañang for wholesale condemnation. The President should bear in mind that a crowd of 500,000 angry and displaced people can surround the Palace and force him to resign,” the Pamala­kaya leader also warned.

Last week, Aquino asked officials of the LLDA and DPWH to conduct and submit their studies on the proposed development projects in Laguna Lake, which include the construction of 100-kilometer road dike that would start from Taytay and pass through Taguig and Muntinlupa in the National Capital Region and Biñan, Sta.Rosa, Calamba up to Sta.Cruz in Laguna.

The proposed 100-kilometer road dike project is part of the Laguna Lake master plan from 2011 to 2020 that include big ticket projects such as the dredging of the 94,000 hectare lake, construction of ferry boats and eco-tourism.

Pamalakaya claimed the DPWH and LLDA also want to reclaim not less than 5,000 hectares of inland waters in Taguig and Muntinlupa for the construction of another international airport under the proposed project.

The militant group said not only the 10,000 families but also the nearly 3.9 million people across the lake will be affected by the Laguna Lake master plan.

Instead of pushing the Laguna Lake master plan, Pama­lakaya said the national government should pursue an on-site development program for lake fishermen and residents. The group said the Aquino administration should refocus public funds to socialized housing to residents and invest on programs that would improve the productivity of lake fishermen and provide decent paying jobs to other residents.

“The problem is Mr. Aquino because he does not listen to marginalized people. He listens to his class interest which represents a little over 1 percent of the social strata or nearly a percent of the 100 million population,” the group said.