Fire victims still living at CICC

A year after a big fire hit Barangays Guizo and Mantuyong in Mandaue City, the fire victims continue to stay at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) grounds.

This, since the City Government is still finishing the development of the fire site and processing the purchase of the property where some of the affected families will be relocated.

Lawyer Mae Elaine Bathan, chief of staff of Mayor Luigi Quisumbing, said they are finalizing the compromise agreement for the acquisition of the property.

Under the draft agreement, she said lots will be drawn to determine who will remain at the fire site and who will be transferred to the relocation site.

“Right now, the developed site can already accommodate 100 residents within the Guizo area, while we continue to develop the remainder of the property going to the Mantuyong area. So we actually just need to finalize the compromise agreement,” said Bathan.

The CICC ground had been used as an evacuation site by more than 2,000 families affected by the fire last March 12, 2016.

The City’s Housing and Urban Development Office, though, identified 657 families who are qualified to return to the fire site or be given a relocation site.

Of this number, 359 can rebuild their houses in the razed area while the rest will be be relocated.

Quisumbing had earlier indentified a property in Barangay Agus and Barangay Pajac in Lapu-Lapu City as a relocation site for the fire victims.

“It has to undergo appraisal. The City has come up with its own appraisal and we have requested a third party to verify the figures and the value of the properties. From there, we will (choose and) make our offer to the land owner,” Bathan said.

This week, Bathan said they will ask the City Council to allow the mayor to enter into a compromise agreement and negotiate for the purchase of the relocation site. /