Makati relocatees finally see the light

MANILA, Philippines—Some 700 families who were relocated from danger zones in Makati City to Calauan, Laguna province, will soon be seeing the light, literally speaking.

According to the Makati government, it has finally secured the permits necessary for the electrification of the 40-hectare Makati Homeville.

It added in a statement that on Thursday, its Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) received from Calauan town officials the Fire Safety Inspection Certificate and Certificate of Final Electrical Inspection.

As a result, the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) can start installing electric posts and other lighting equipment for the benefit of some 700 families living in the relocation site next week.

The relocatees used to live in danger zones or “public domains” in Barangays Rizal, West Rembo, East Rembo, Poblacion, Guadalupe Viejo, Guadalupe Nuevo, Pio del Pilar, Valenzuela, Bangkal, Palanan and San Isidro.

Peter Dizon, DEPW engineer, said the “delay” in the electrification of the site stemmed from the “negligence” of the contractor, Twin Leaf Group Inc., during the first phase of the site’s   development from 2008 to 2010.

According to Dizon, the contractor, without first securing the necessary building permits from the Calauan government, constructed a health center, two two-story public school buildings and a covered court.

Although the Calauan government granted Twin Leaf a site development permit in 2008, it reportedly failed to comply with the conditions set by local officials, resulting in the permit’s cancellation in 2011. The DEPW consequently submitted an alteration plan on Feb. 10, 2014.

Geronimo Comaling, head of the DEPW’s survey and land improvement section, said it took the Makati government “years to rectify the violations and finally obtain the approval” of the Calauan government.

On Saturday, the Inquirer tried calling the phone numbers of Twin Leaf that were listed online to get a reaction but to no avail.

According to Dizon, Christian Magnaye of the Meralco branch in San Pablo, Laguna, said that the installation of electric posts, cables and transformers would take “about two to three weeks.”

The first building to be hooked up to the power source would be the health center followed by the “rest of the buildings and 395 completed household units in the area,” he added.

On the other hand, the Makati City government said that it was working on the requirements for the installation of potable water sources in all households on the relocation site.

At present, residents get their drinking water from pumps in the area and communal faucets with a submeter installed by Laguna Water District (LWD).

The city government said the LWD would “eventually” deliver “bulk water through a mother meter and supply water to all households through the site’s water pipe system.”