For Yolanda survivors: NHA to build 17,000 houses in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - The National Housing Authority will be providing 17,000 houses to survivors of super typhoon Yolanda in northern Cebu.

Cebu Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office Chief Balatazar Tribunalo Jr. disclosed this yesterday in a presentation on continuing rehabilitation efforts in typhoon-affected areas.

Tribunalo, however, said that while the 17,000 houses would be built, the project would still go through the proper protocols, like having it undergo a bidding process.

While this may take more time as it is almost a year now since Yolanda wreaked havoc in the Visayas, Tribunalo said what is important is that the project for Cebu is good as approved.

“This is a very good development,” he said.

Based on Tribunalo’s presentation, Yolanda damaged 102, 404 houses in northern Cebu, necessitating a budget of P5.6 billion for the resettlement programs.

The provincial government also has had a lot of help from private groups and non-government organizations like the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. and Gawad Kalinga, which have been going back and forth to the affected areas for a year now to carry out rehabilitation efforts, including the building and turning over of houses.

In the report, PDRRMO said 17,151 families in northern Cebu need to transfer to another location; this, however, is made more difficult to do because of a lot of challenges, which included the acquisition of relocation sites.

Early this year, the Cebu Provincial Board, through a resolution sponsored by Board Member Jude Thaddeus Sybico, requested President Benigno Aquino III to declare the islands of Bantayan and Camotes as having alienable and disposable lands.

This, after the NHA said that it can only provide financial assistance for housing materials and not relocation sites to typhoon victims due to the present status of the islands as being classified as timberland.

Sybico had said that with a special proclamation from the president, it would make it easier to acquire relocation sites for the typhoon victims in the said areas.

Yesterday, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer-in-charge Czareem Estella confirmed that all local government units affected by Yolanda have sent requests for his office to make appraisals of properties which can be turned into relocation sites.

He said, though, that even without the appraisal, he knew some LGUs have proceeded with the actual construction of houses.

Estella said they are very cautious in the appraisal process because they like to make sure that the properties are livable and safe to avoid having another “Balili case.”

He was referring to the controversial Balili property in the City of Naga that was underwater but was bought by the administration of then governor Gwendolyn Garcia for a provincial government project.

Asked if the LGUs’ decision to construct houses without appraisal is doing so “at their own risk,” Estella said that it can be the case but something should not be focused on.

He further disclosed that there was even a recommendation from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources that the provincial government can even use its power to cancel tax declarations on properties, if needed, just to identify relocation sites.

Meanwhile, Tribunalo said that they also continue to remind the LGUs that they should be wary in choosing relocation sites.

He said LGUs should follow their own community-based risk assessments and geo-hazard mapping results in picking relocation areas.

“Dili lang pahimango, ipanawong gyud nila na (that they should) follow risk assessment results,” Tribunalo said. - AJ de la Torre-Orong/RHM (FREEMAN)