AROUND 30,000 housing units are expected to be distributed to the homeless this year, the National Housing Authority (NHA) told a House of Representatives committee on Tuesday.
“As of last year, we have around 30,000 unoccupied [housing units] but this year, we’re in the process of awarding these houses and turning these over to beneficiaries,” NHA general manager Joeben A. Tai told the House committee on appropriations.
Surigao del Sur Rep. Romeo S. Momo, Sr. called for expediency in awarding of housing units. “If they are not yet turned over to the beneficiaries, then the houses may incur damages and you [will] have to repair them again,” Mr. Momo said.
The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) is proposing a P1.5-billion budget for the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Program (4PH), the government’s low-cost housing project.
DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino L. Acuzar said that houses will be built in-city with a monthly amortization graduated to a lower amount to be affordable and accessible to the poor’s needs. He added that the subsidy ranges between P3,500 to P4,000.
However, party-list Rep. France L. Castro criticized the government’s housing program, claiming it is far from being pro-poor. “If one house is 60,000 per square meter (sqm), times 24 sqm, its total contract is P1.4 million. Can a poor person afford this?” Ms. Castro asked the committee.
Given that the proposed subsidy stands at P1.5 billion and it would cover the first million houses targeted by the 4PH, Ms. Castro said beneficiaries will only get an estimated P1,500 each as interest subsidy.
Mr. Acuzar explained that under the 4PH, a beneficiary will only pay P400,000 out of the total P1.2-million cost of a housing unit. The loan will be payable over a period of 30 years to the Home Development Mutual Fund or PAGIBIG fund with a 6% annual interest.
A beneficiary will pay 1% of the interest while the government will shoulder the remaining 5%.
The housing sector has a proposed budget of P5.40 billion under the 2024 National Expenditure Program.
Out of the total budget, P2.61 billion will go the DHSUD, P2 billion to the NHA, P121.04 million to the Social Housing Finance Corp., and P672.72 million to the Human Settlements Adjudication Commission.
Lawmakers sought to increase next year’s housing budget for more people to afford to participate in the government’s housing program. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
