Homeless families belonging to Kadamay cross an open field to their new
shelters in Village 2 of Atlantica housing project in Pandi town, Bulacan province. JOAN BONDOC/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
PANDI, Bulacan—The collection of monthly amortization for housing projects in Pandi, Bulacan went down by 50 percent after members of the urban poor group Kadamay occupied the units intended for the military and police personnel, a housing official said on Tuesday.
Engineer Romuel Alimboyao of the National Housing Authority (NHA) Central Luzon said the collection had been affected as legitimate recipients questioned how Kadamay members got their houses for free.
The group took over more than 5,278 houses in this province last March 8.
“Sa ngayon po Mr. Chair, nakaapekto na sir kasi po ang aming collection starting this March ay humina po dahil sinasabi nila ‘yung mga Kadamay sinasabing libre e bakit sila nagbabayad…” Alimboyao said when he briefed senators and congressmen, who came to the province for an ocular inspection of the projects.
(Mr. Chair, our collection has declined since March with homeowners reasoning that the Kadamay members have gotten their houses for free. They ask why they should pay for their houses.)
READ: Kadamay gives Bulacan town a big headache
“Halos malaking poryesento (ang ibinagsak ng collection). May 50 percent ho (The collection went down by a huge margin. Around 50 percent),” he said.
Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, chairman of the Senate committee on urban planning, housing and resettlement, called the drop in collection “very alarming” and “worrisome.”
“This incident sets precedent sa lahat ng mga pabahay (in all housing projects). More than 50 percent, that’s worrisome and very alarming,” Ejercito said.
“E papano pa tayo magpapatayo ng mga bahay kung hindi natin mababawi (How will we be able to build homes if we won’t be able to claim them)?” he said.
READ: Urban poor exec warns of more Kadamay takeovers
The senator then asked NHA General Manager Marcelino Escalada Jr. what could be done to address the problem.
“In so far as the NHA is concerned, upon knowing that there’s an impact in our collection, which is a little over 50 percent, we already mobilized our own people,” Escalada said.
“We need to campaign massively in trying to tell everyone for the old accounts they have to pay. For new accounts that most of the Kadamay members are trying to allege, I think that’s very clear on the part of the NHA that there is no free housing. Everyone should pay because that’s an obligation on the part of the beneficiary,” he said.
READ: ‘The poor are not lazy’: Kadamay asks for regular jobs
But Ejercito warned that the owners’ refusal to pay for the houses can cause the “collapse” of the housing sector. IDL/rga