By Jovee Marie de la Cruz - September 27, 2017

The House of Representatives has approved on second reading a joint resolution authorizing the redistribution of thousands of housing units intended for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Philippine National Police (PNP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and Bureau of Corrections (BuCor).

Through viva voce voting, the lawmakers passed on Tuesday House Joint Resolution 11 authorizing the National Housing Authority (NHA) to award the unoccupied and unawarded government housing units to other qualified beneficiaries.

House Committee on Housing and Urban Development Rep. Alfredo Benitez of Negros Occidental, sponsor of the resolution, said the measure seeks to award the unawarded housing that are not yet occupied and whose ownership and possession is surrendered by their respective awardees.

The lawmaker said housing units whose respective awards were canceled by reason of default in the payment of amortization or for any violation of the terms and conditions of the individual loan agreement were also included.

Benitez said the nonuse by the intended beneficiaries of the housing units resulted to loss of revenues on the part of the government, unnecessary exposure of the units to unfavorable weather condition and nonattainment of the objectives of the program.

“The low occupancy rate of the completed housing units will result in the loss of opportunity for the government to recover costs that can be spent for other social projects, fast deterioration of the units, exposure of the units to the risk of being occupied by families/persons other than the intended beneficiaries and deprivation of the intended beneficiaries of the timely use and benefits of the housing projects,” he said.

Benitez also said the low occupancy rate of the completed housing units by their intended beneficiaries is a clear indication of a “failed program in the face of the need for government to provide housing to a larger portion of its populace, an undeniably undesirable situation that needs remedial legislation”.

Under the resolution, the NHA may, instead, identify alternative beneficiaries and beneficiary-specific sites, such as in the case of public-school teachers living within the area, employees in the local government concerned where the housing units are constructed, barangay employees and functionaries and informal settlers who could all benefit from the unoccupied housing units.

Some of the units of this housing program in Pandi and San Jose del Monte, Bulacan had already been occupied by the group Kadamay.