Ping has pragmatic solution for 'squatters' problem
One of the best ways to solve the problem of informal settlers is to weed out of corruption, says independent presidential candidate Panfilo "Ping" Lacson.
How? The misused taxpayers’ money can be redirected to finance state-funded housing projects, according to the veteran solon.
Lacson addressed this issue with a pragmatic approach after it was brought to his attention by a resident from Antipolo City, Rizal. The person has been renting a house and has been living in constant fear of getting evicted because he could not afford a real estate property of his own.
In a town hall forum held at the Ynares Center on Friday, April 22, Lacson told voters that the Philippine housing sector currently has a gap of 5.3 million housing units nationwide. Closing such gap would entail significant budget allocation from the national government.
“Cinompute (compute) po namin (We did a computation). Ang paggawa para makabuo ng isang bahay, isang maliit na bahay—24-square meters—‘pag ito’y high-rise, P580,000 ang isa. Ito ‘yung building. Kapag detached naman, 24-square meters na nasa 40-square-meter lot, P750,000 ang isa (To build a house, a small housing unit—24 square meters—in a high-rise building, it would cost P580,000 each. If it’s detached, a 24-square meter home in a 40-square meter lot, it would cost P750,000 each,)’’ Lacson explained
Lacson said he does not want to make a false promise to the public and tell them outright that he would give them house-and-lot packages if he wins the elections, which is a common trick applied by most politicians.
Instead, he vowed to develop better strategies to achieve a similar goal.
“Madaling sabihin, ‘lahat kayo ‘pag nanalo ako, tiyak na may tahanan (It is easy to say, ‘if I win, I guarantee all of you will have a house). Hindi po namin pwedeng gawin ‘yon. Cinompute (compute) po namin. Kapag isinakatuparan natin 5.3-million houses, P500 billion isang taon sa budget. Kakainin po ‘yung ating national budget (We cannot do that because we did our computation. If we are going to deliver 5.3 million houses, it would take at least P500 billion from our national budget annually. It will eat up our national budget),’’ explained the senator.
One way of dealing with this problem, Lacson said, is to come up with productivity-enhancing state policies that would be conducive to the social and economic development of everyone.
This includes getting rid of corruption since the government loses P700 billion on average annually because of it.
The veteran statesman likewise pitched his Budget Reform Advocacy for Village Empowerment (BRAVE) program as a viable long-term solution in which local government units (LGUs) would be given the wherewithal to provide for the needs and priorities of their respective constituencies.
Under such policy, the LGUs from the provincial down to the barangay levels would be granted separate budget allocation to implement various state-funded projects—be it housing, electrification, tourism or livelihood—on top of their national tax allotment.
Senatorial aspirant and former Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Piñol, for his part, vowed to help the Lacson administration introduce policy directions through legislation that could resolve the concerns of informal settlers who took care of lands for a longtime but were being denied land titles.
‘’All over Metro Manila, even in Rizal, there are so many informal settlers who until now remain uncertain whether they could secure ownership of the property. Mr. President, God-willing and you are elected as President of the Philippines, I will pursue this program under your watch,’’ he told Lacson.
“Kasi ito po ‘yung isa sa mga sanhi ng ating mga social problem (Because this is one of the causes of our social problems). Nakatayo ‘yung bahay ng pobre, pinaghirapan niya, ‘yung lupa hindi niya malaman kung mapapasakanya ba o hindi (The poor worked hard to build his own home, but there is no guarantee if the land where it was built could be declared his property or not). We have to resolve this problem once and for all, Mr. President,’’ Piñol stressed.