Thursday, November 6, 2008 [ philstar.com ]
In line with the government’s Southrail project, about 147 families living along the railways in Muntinlupa City recently relocated to the Southville III Resettlement site located inside the NBP Reservation in Barangay Poblacion.
The city government’s Urban Poor Affairs Office (UPAO) said these families were transferred through the help of the Local Inter-Agency Committee which is being composed of different government agencies, private sector and representatives from associations of affected families.
The transfer will continue until all the affected families covered by the Phase 1 of the project is completed. Phase 1 covers Barangays Sucat, Buli, Cupang and Alabang.
The relocation of the said families is necessary under the government’s Southrail project, which calls for the massive rehabilitation of the line of the Philippine National Railways.
According to UPAO, there are 3,749 families that are qualified for relocation.
Presently, there is a total of 1,841 housing units at Southville that are ready for occupancy, and 2,126 housing units which are now half-completed.
Mayor Aldrin San Pedro who is closely coordinating with the National Housing Authority (NHA), said electricity and water supply have been made available in the housing units before the families were transferred. “These services are vital to every family,” he added.
The mayor said a total of 7,035 housing units will be built at Southville III.
He said the city government is closely coordinating with other government agencies and the private sector for the construction of a public market, police outpost, day-care center and school at the housing site.
San Pedro together with Vice President Noli de Castro, concurrent chairman of the Housing Urban Development Coordinating Council, and NHA General Manager Federico Laxa recently inspected the housing project. – Rhodina Villanueva