City in Basilan raffles off 150th house and lot

SO HAPPY Happiness is written all over the face of Basit Dansalan as he makes his way to receive the key to the house and lot he won during the raffle draw held by the city government of Lamitan in Basilan for its residents. —Julie Alipala

LAMITAN CITY, BASILAN, Philippines — Basit Dansalan, a resident of Luksumbang village here, was awaiting the opening of the caravan “Reaching Out Serving Everyone” (Rose) on June 15 to avail himself and his children of medical services.

But when city officials started drawing the raffle for a house and lot that cost P600,000, he was surprised to hear his name called.

“I was so surprised. I can’t describe how happy I am,” said Dansalan, who had been unemployed since the pandemic. He went home with the keys to his new house.

Mayor Roderick Furigay said Dansalan was the 150th person from Lamitan to receive a house and lot this year.

READ: Ex-Lamitan mayor, aide, guard killed in Ateneo shooting

Mother’s legacy

Under the program, which started in late 2022 in honor of Furigay’s slain wife, Rosita, who was a former mayor of the city, the local government aimed to distribute 480 housing units to indigent residents.

The Rose Uy Furigay Foundation was also launched on the same day of the raffle draw. Aside from Dansalan, Jarinan Dahung Bakil, 38, also received a similar unit in Purok 2, Barangay Buahan here.

Rose is also the nickname of Rosita Furigay, whose birthday fell on June 15. She was killed on July 24, 2022, along with her executive assistant, Victor George Capistrano, and Jeneven Bandiala, security guard of the Ateneo de Manila University.

Rosita was on her way to attend the graduation of her daughter Hannah at the Ateneo de Manila University Law School in Quezon City, when a medical doctor from this city, Chao Tiao Yumol, started shooting at Rosita and company. Hannah survived the attack.

The Furigay family and residents here commemorated Rose’s 60th birthday on Saturday.

Hannah, now a lawyer, and her sister Kelsey, a businesswoman, said they wanted the people to remember their mother as a public servant who prioritized the welfare of the poor, regardless of faith and ethnicity.

According to Kelsey, they created a foundation dedicated to uplifting the youth of Lamitan through financial assistance, community events, and outreach programs.

“What we offer are scholarship and leadership programs, community service projects for the health and well-being of our youth,” Kelsey said.

Bakil thanked the Furigay family for continuing Rosita’s legacy and for making her a beneficiary of the house and lot project. She added that she was grateful to the city government for providing her children with free medical services and school supplies and for granting indigent families like her rice assistance and household items.

Of the 480 units targeted for distribution, 50 would be funded by the city government, 380 by the Kapyanan program of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and 50 units by the Ministry of Human Settlements and Development.

Distribution modes

The mayor said BARMM gave the city government a free hand in distributing the units. “Some will be raffled to the poorest of the poor in Lamitan, others through strict screening of beneficiaries, especially among those who lost their homes through fire, flooding and relocation,” Furigay said.

He started the raffle style of awarding the house and lot units on Dec. 24, 2022, in the city, drawing out at least two lucky recipients for every special occasion held by the city. —Julie Alipala