Thousands of urban poor families from Manila and Bulacan took over the unoccupied homes in a campaign they called “Occupy Bulacan” early March to assert what they said was the Filipino poor’s right to free housing from the government. Press reports said the National Housing Authority (NHA) last year reported that there are 52,341 idle houses nationwide that were meant for the personnel of Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), but in this number, only 13 percent or 8,327 were occupied. Nearly a quarter of Manila’s 13 million residents live in slums due to poverty and a shortage of low-cost housing, studies have found. / AFP PHOTO / TED ALJIBE
(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday asked the military and police who are awardees of a housing project in Pandi, Bulacan to give up the units illegally occupied by members of an urban poor group, saying he would construct “nicer, more comfortable and bigger” ones for them.
Duterte made the appeal during the 120th anniversary of the Philippine Army in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig.
“Meron akong pakiusap. This ruckus in Bulacan, parang inagaw ng mga kapwa natin Pilipino na mahirap din, I will look into the matter seriously, and I will ask you soldiers and police, bitawan nalang ninyo yan. Tutal mahirap sila. I promise I will look for another land nearby, or maybe contiguous to that area there. Gagawa ako ng mas maganda. May tubig na, at may electric(ity) na pagpasok niyo,” he said, noting that the existing units–which were constructed “not during his time”–had none of those facilities and “were not constructed properly.”
He said he hoped the construction of the “nicer, a little bit more expensive, more comfortable and bigger,” and “furnished” units would have been completed by December.
He said he has already asked the National Housing Authority for “a suitable land.”
“Wag nalang natin guluhin mga tao dyan kasi..their only sin is really na mahirap din sila gaya natin,” he said.
“Wag nalang kayo makipagaway. Wala ring kwenta.. Hayaan nalang natin… I am making a commitment, and I guarantee, you will have (yours), mas maganda. I will personally go there to supervise your housing project,” he said.
As for the members of the Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap, Duterte also had something to say: “Wag ninyo galawin ang mga sundalo at pulis.”
“Do not create trouble, avoid chaos and we will try to solve what ails this country,” he said.