A total of 672 Caloocan residents from Barangays 21, 25, and 33 received their Certificates of Entitlement for Lot Allocation (CELA), ending decades of disputes over land ownership on Monday, Dec. 2.
Mayor Dale "Along" Malapitan during the distribution of CELA on Dec. 2, 2024. (Mayor Along Malapitan's Facebook page)
Mayor Dale “Along” Malapitan led the distribution of certificates formalizing the residents’ legal claim to the land where their homes have been built.
“Hindi ko man po ito ipinangako noon ngunit tiniyak ko na magtutulong-tulong ang buong pamahalaang lungsod upang tuluyang maibigay sa mga benepisyaryo ang CELA ng lupa na kanilang kinamulatan (I didn't even promise this before but I assure you that the city government will work hard so that the CELA of the land where they were raised will be given to them),” Malapitan said.
The initiative was made possible through the Housing and Resettlement Office (HARO), City Legal Department, the Sangguniang Panlungsod, and the City Administrator’s Office.
“Bilang isang tunay na Batang Kankaloo, batid ko ang pakiramdam ng mga kapwa ko Batang Kankaloo na nais protektahan ang lugar na kanilang kinalakihan kaya nagpapasalamat ako sa lahat ng mga nagmalasakit at nagtrabaho upang tuluyan nang magwakas ang pakikipaglaban ng mga residente para sa kanilang lupa (As a true Batang Kankaloo, I know the feelings of my fellow Batang Kankaloo who want to protect the place where they grew up in, so I thank all those who cared and worked to finally end the residents' fight for their land),” he said.