National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) Undersecretary Paterna Ruiz has requested the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to investigate the Barangay Council of Cabawan, Tagbilaran City for its “malicious” and “prejudicial” resolution which opposed the establishment of a tenement housing in the village which is supposed to benefit 126 displaced urban poor families.
Ruiz on Thursday told the Chronicle that she has submitted a letter to the office of DILG Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs Martin Diño requesting the probe.
“With that, ang housing association gi raise na nila sa level sa national kaning conduct aning Sangguniang Baranggay of Cabawan, amo nanang gi raise, mao na among reaction,” said Ruiz.
Ruiz’s statement was issued in reaction to the Cabawan Sangguniang Barangay’s passage of a resolution expressing its opposition against the construction of the tenement in their village.
The SB stated that some residents raised concern over the proliferation of “illegal drugs and other crime in the Barangay.”
It was also indicated in the resolution that 16 residents voted against the tenement’s establishment in their village while only two voted in favor of the move.
According to Ruiz, the resolution was malicious and prejudicial against the beneficiaries of the housing program.
Ruiz lamented that the resolution accused the beneficiaries of the program of being criminal elements.
“Ang basis nila sa resolution is criminal elements, I don’t know kung ano ang basis nila. May police report ba na ang tanan na 126 families ay criminal elements…Unsy basis sa maong resolution. Wala akong nakitang investigation or facts ana, so ang akong conclusion ana is prejudicial without facts,” Ruiz said.
“Naluoy kaayo ko. Can you imagine? The 126 families na members sa housing association nato na e-relocate nga informal settlers, they are accusing them of being criminal elements? Og criminal pa ngano wa man na presoha?” she added.
Ruiz also noted that the SB had no legal basis behind their opposition particularly as the proposed site for the tenement is a not owned by the barangay and is a private lot.
Earlier, residents of Barangay Poblacion I in Tagbilaran City which is one of the two proposed sites for the tenement housing program, also expressed opposition against the initiative.
Some residents through an unsigned letter sent to the Tagbilaran City government cited environmental concerns such as the presence of sinkholes in the area.
The tenement housing program in the city is a convergence program which is being facilitated by the NAPC and is supposed to benefit some 500 urban poor families in the city including 144 families from an informal settlement in Amakan which was earlier demolished and 400 families who lived along the city’s coastline.
The NAPC had tapped the following to be part of the multi-agency project: Tagbilaran government, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and Department of Public Works and Highways, among others. (A. Doydora)