Around 700 families of informal settlers on a 4.5 hectare lot in Barangay 35 may be transferred to a resettlement area should disagreement on the required payment will persist.
The Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) is asking the occupants of the lot to pay P3,500 per square meter, but the informal settlers offered to only pay the maximum of P1,500 per square meter. This was revealed yesterday by Bacolod Councilor El Cid Familiaran, chairman of the Committee on Urban Poor, Housing and Resettlement, following the PCGG’s request for help from the city in mobilizing the residents of the controversial lot to finally settle the conflict. However, Familiaran stressed that all of the 700 families could not be accommodated in the city’s existing relocation site in case there’s a buyer of the lot. He said the city could use the Comprehensive Shelter Program by putting up tenements to accommodate the affected residents in an affordable cost. “The question is if the city has a budget for that,” he added. Familiaran said the city may negotiate with the PCGG to lower down the cost so that the residents can afford the value of the lot that was set by the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) and the Social Housing and Finance Corporation. The councilor emphasized that the decision would depend on Mayor Monico Puentevella as to what action should be taken to address the problem. “Let’s see if there’s a win-win solution to that,” Familiaran said. City Administrator, lawyer Rolando Villamor Jr., had earlier revealed that PCGG will meet with the informal settlers this week to settle the prevailing misunderstanding on land rental and possible buyout./WDJ By Nicole A. Villavecer Watchmen Daily Journal
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