‘Payment terms?’
Rama bloc in council raises affordability, security of tenure issues Among questions raised by Councilors Daluz, Garganera, Garcia: Can the settlers afford to pay for the lots? What assurance do they have that they would be the rightful owners of the lot
WHAT happens to the urban poor settlers of 93-1 lots after Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña signed a land swap agreement with Gov. Hilario Davide III?
The question was raised by the members of the City Council’s majority bloc as they said they will scrutinize the memorandum of agreement (MOA) to ensure security of land tenure for the settlers.
Councilor Jose Daluz III, head of the committee on housing, said the bigger concern is, how the settlers pay the City Government for the lots and how much.
“There is still much to be done. We want to talk to the beneficiaries of the 93-1 because we don’t want to give them false hopes. The City, the new owner of the lots, could be stricter than the Province and it will be difficult for them to own the property. There must be a general agreement between the City and the beneficiaries on how they will go about distributing the land to the intended beneficiaries,” he said.
When they approve the MOA, Daluz said, the council has to make sure of the legitimacy of the lot acquisition by the settlers.
“We don’t want a situation where when the City comes in, it will only get more complicated because there are surprise rules or guidelines that may only worsen the problems of the settlers,” Daluz said.
Of the 4,364 home lots covered under Provincial Ordinance 93-1, only 1,445 have been paid in full and 1,188 partially.
There are 1,731 lots that have not been paid at all.
When Provincial Ordinance 93-1 was approved in 1993, the beneficiaries were given two years to pay off the property.
A 10-year extension was given to 93-1 occupants but the period lapsed in 2004, with many of them failing to settle in full their obligations to the Province.
Since then, the Provincial Government stopped accepting pay- ments from the occupants, who then became uncertain if they would get to own the property.
Daluz questioned Osmeña’s move to sign the MOA last Wednesday since it has no authority from the council, but he said he doesn’t want to dwell on it as the payment scheme and pricing for the beneficiaries still need to be laid down.
Councilor Joel Garganera agreed with Daluz, saying he also wants to know how much the beneficiaries will pay to the City.
He said the lots should be affordable.
Garganera said the city council should meet with the members of the Provincial Board (PB) to discuss the provisions of the MOA.
The agreement states that the City will give the Province its sewage treatment plant at the North Reclamation Area (NRA), the 13-hectare relocation site in Barangay Pulpogan in Consolacion, Block 27 at the NRA, a two-hectare lot at the South Road Proper- ties and the Cebu City Zoo.
The City, in turn, will get all the lots covered by Ordinance 93-1.
The 93-1 lots cover around 51 hectares spread in 11 barangays in Cebu City.
Councilor Raymond Garcia, giving his opinion, said he wants the council’s ad hoc committee for 93-1 to review the MOA.
The committee is composed of Daluz, Garcia, Councilors Jocelyn Pesquera, Gerry Guardo and Philip Zafra.
Like the other councilors, Garcia also wants to know the City’s payment and pricing scheme for the settlers.
Garcia said the council will support the approval of the MOA as long as it benefits both the City and the settlers.
“The council also wants an end to this problem,” he said.
The City Council is expected to take up the MOA in their regular session next week.