Arman Albarillo: Nobyembre 2007

Privilege speech of Rep. Teddy Casino
November 27, 2007
Kauganay ng kalagayan ng mga Maralita sa Timog Katagalugan!

Mr. Speaker, my dear colleagues, I rise on a matter of personal and collective privilege to bring to your attention the sad, appalling, and rage-inducing plight of the people of Southville 1, a relocation center located in Cabuyao, Laguna .

Southville is a 65-hectare relocation site for informal settlers from the “homes along the riles” of the Philippine National Railways (PNR) southbound tracks. There are presently 30,000 residents in Southville I, comprising 9,783 households.

These families were dislocated from their informal communities in Makati City and Manila through a massive demolition drive in accordance with the President’s Administrative Order 111 released November 8, 2004, identifying the rehabilitation and development of the PNR lines as a priority project of the national government. In the rush to implement the order, however, it appears these families were forcibly relocated in utter disregard of the law in a process fraught with violence, tainted by corruption, and in gross violation of their rights and dignity as human beings.

Dito ho sa Pilipinas, kapag sinabi mong nakatira ka sa subdivision, sosyal ang dating mo, lalu na kapag ang pangalan ng lugar mo ay Southville Subdivision Phase I. The picture that comes to your mind is a well-tended community with concrete houses, a clubhouse and tree-lined streets. A place where there is 24-hour village security and where garbage is collected thrice a week. Pero para ho sa 30,000 mamamayan ng Southville I sa Barangay Marinig sa Cabuyao, kung anong ganda ng pangalan ng kanilang lugar ay siya naming sahol ng kanilang kalagayan.

Why do I say this? Because Mr. Speaker, my dear colleagues, let me describe to you what happened and what is happening in Southville. Upon demolition of their old homes, each household was offered 25,000 pesos by the National Housing Authority (NHA) and promised another 25,000 pesos for housing materials if they agreed to be relocated to a 40-sq. meter lot in Southville I. The lot was to be payable in 30 years. True enough, after arriving in the area, they were given their 2nd release of 25,000 pesos for housing materials. But here’s the catch. They could only buy from selected hardware stores chosen by the NHA. And these were stores that sold their products for almost double the normal price.

Isipin n’yo na lang po, Mr. Speaker. Kulang na kulang na nga ang P25,000 para makapagpatayo ng matinong bahay, ano pa kaya kung overpriced ang mga materyales na pabibilhin sa iyo? Kaya ho ang mga bahay sa Southville karamihan ay may kaunting hollow block, may kaunting kongkreto, pero lupa ang sahig, walang mga dingding at kisame. Karamihan po ay mga temporary shelters, yung barong-barong kung tawagin.

About 2/3 of the households in Southville have no electricity and water. That is because when they got there, electricity and water connections cost an additional P5,000 which they could not afford. Those lucky enough to have had the money to get a power connection eventually opted to have their electricity cut because they could no afford to pay the high cost of electricity.

Water services, on the other hand remain fundamentally crude. Deep wells are situated in most blocks but the water is not fit for drinking. Many got sick when they drank the water, probably because Southville is located right beside what used to be the municipal dumpsite. So what do the residents do? They buy bottled water at 35 pesos per container. Sosyal nanaman ang dating: nakatira na sa subdivision, bumibili pa ng bottled water. Those who cannot afford to buy water are forced to drink the dirty water from the wells, causing them to get perpetually sick.

Paano nga hong makakabayad ng kuryente o tubig, eh karamihan po sa kanila ay nawalan din ng hanapbuhay nang mawasak ang tahanan at ma-relocate? Karamihan sa mga residente ay walang makuhang trabaho sa Cabuyao o mga kalapit na bayan dahil kulang sa pag-aaral o kakayanan. Para doon sa iilan na may trabaho, kailangang mag-squatter uli sa Maynila dahil sa mahal ng pamasahe na umaabot ng 130 pesos ang balikan.

The most common kind of disease in Southville is tuberculosis and dengue. In fact, data gathered by Bayan Muna members from November 8-17 of 2006 showed a total of 1,036 cases of dengue in that period alone. Those who were already critical were brought to nearby hospitals in Cabuyao but most were refused treatment because the hospital was already overcrowded.

Southville 1 has only one health center with two nurses and a part-time midwife who charges P5,000 per delivery. This sole health center is in charge of the entire 9,783 households and is only open during weekdays. Sa Southville po, bawal magkasakit tuwing Sabado at Linggo.

No wonder, Mr. Speaker, there are such tragic, devastating cases as those of Lily Dulay in Southville. Lily Dulay was a young mother living with her parents in Southville. She gave birth to a baby girl at home last September 10. After a week, Lily got a fever which the nurses and the midwife at the health center diagnosed as simply “binat”. But the fever did not stop and because no hospital in Cabuyao would admit her without a downpayment, she just went home hoping to eventually get over her infection. But she did not get well, until finally, a month after she gave birth, her parents just found her dead, lying on her bed, dead beside her baby girl, the baby still suckling the milk from her breast. Saan kayo nakarinig n’yan, isang batang ina, namatay na lang sa sakit dahil palpak ang health center at walang pang-downpayment sa ospital, namatay habang pinapasuso ang kanyang anak. I have never heard of anything more depressing than an ailing mother dying with her baby still sucking at her breast.

Most cruel of all is that her parents, who are too old to work and rely on their neighbors’ charity for survival, are being sued by the funeral home for the P5,000 they owe for their daughter’s kabaong.

Napakapait na buhay ang sinasapit ng mga tulad ni Lily at marami pang iba sa Southville. This is the kind of vicious poverty that kills innocent babies. And you know what? This poverty, this hell of a place to live in, has a price, literally. All residents of Southville are required to fork out a monthly payment of 200-500 pesos for the next 30 years for the titles to their lots to be given to them. And once you default in your payment for even a few months, you are given a notice to move out. This is another problem faced by almost everyone in Southville because almost half of the population are unemployed.

Something is wrong, very very wrong in Southville I, Mr. Speaker, and we have to find out lest there be more Lily Dulays and orphaned babies out there.

As far as the law is concerned, Republic Act No. 7279 or the "Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992" specifically states that:
“ It shall be the policy of the State to undertake, in cooperation with the private sector, a comprehensive and continuing Urban Development and Housing Program, which shall:
(a) Uplift the conditions of the underprivileged and homeless citizens in urban areas and in resettlement areas by making available to them decent housing at affordable cost, basic services, and employment opportunities;”
Given what is happening in Southville, can we say that the conditions of our underprivileged and relocated citizens there have been uplifted? Do they live in decent homes? Is the relocation site “conducive to commercial and industrial activities which can generate more economic opportunities for the people” as provided in Section 2 of UDHA?
What about the people’s health and safety? Was this considered when the settlers were relocated right beside a giant dumpsite? Section 2, par. (4) of UDHA clearly aims for a “Reduction in urban dysfunctions, particularly those that adversely affect public health, safety and ecology.”
Were the residents offered the “most reasonable price of land and shelter based on the needs and financial capability of Program beneficiaries and appropriate financing schemes” as provided by Section 3? Are the criteria for assessing the financial capability of beneficiaries still realistic when the families have been transferred far away from their sources of income, or worse, when the breadwinners have lost their jobs or livelihood because of the dislocation?
Article 5, Section 21 of UDHA states that:
“Socialized housing or resettlement areas shall be provided by the local government unit or the National Housing Authority in cooperation with the private developers and concerned agencies with the following basic services and facilities:
(a) Potable water;
(b) Power and electricity and an adequate power distribution system;
(c) Sewerage facilities and an efficient and adequate solid waste disposal system; and
(d) Access to primary roads and transportation facilities.
The provisions of other basic services and facilities such as health, education, communications, security, recreation, relief and welfare shall be planned and shall be given priority for implementation by the local government unit and concerned agencies in cooperation with the private sector and the beneficiaries themselves.
The local government unit, in coordination with the concerned national agencies, shall ensure that these basic services are provided at the most cost-efficient rates, and shall set as mechanism to coordinate operationally the thrusts, objectives and activities of other government agencies concerned with providing basic services to housing projects.”
Mr. Speaker, going by this provision alone, Southville can be considered a gross violation of the law. Ano ba ang nangyayari sa NHA, and the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council or HUDCC, which is led, by no less than our Vice President, sa LGU ng Cabuyao at Laguna, sa DSWD, DOH at iba pang mga ahensya na dapat umalalay sa mga naghihikahos nating kababayan, na inalisan na nga ng tahanan at hanapbuhay ay itinambak pa sa isang mala-impyernong relocation site?
Section 29 or UDHA states:
The local government unit, in coordination with the National Housing Authority, shall provide relocation or resettlement sites with basic services and facilities and access to employment and livelihood opportunities sufficient to meet the basic needs of the affected families.
Again, do the NHA and the Cabuyao and Laguna LGUs have the faintest idea or interest in what is happening in Southville? Ganyan na ba kamanhid ang ating mga kasamahan sa pamahalaan, na ni hindi man lang nila iniisip ang kapalaran ng 30,000 taga Southville matapos sila itambak sa gilid ng tambakan ng basura?
Mr. speaker, I am calling on the responsible government agencies na magkaroon naman kayo ng malasakit sa inyong kapwa at gawin ninyo ang inyong mga trabaho. I call for an immediate investigation into the failure of the said agencies and LGUs to provide a proper resettlement program for the Southville residents. At habang hindi pa naaayos ang problemang ito, dapat ihinto muna ang lahat ng demolisyon sa riles ng PNR. This is not a particular situation that can be found only in Southville 1. It is also the condition of those who were demolished for the Northrail project in Caloocan, Valenzuela and Bulacan. This is the situation of all informal settlers who were relocated because of projects such as the modernization of the railways. Thus, there should be no demolition and resettlement unless we can ensure better conditions for our underprivileged and homeless citizens.
Sa mga taga-Southville, dapat siguro ay gawin ng libre ang kanilang relocation site dahil sobra ng hirap ang kanilang nararanasan.
I am also asking the House Committee on Housing and Urban Development to investigate the demolitions and improper resettlement of all households that were demolished in favor of the P10.3 billion Southrail project which, I understand, is funded by South Korea. Furthermore, I am calling for a review of the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992, which has failed to address the problems of our urban poor communities.
Mr. Speaker, hindi parang basurang winawalis lamang ang mga taong nakatira sa tabing riles. Kasama po natin sa gallery ngayon ang mga taga Southville. Marami ho sa kanila ang kailangan pang mangutang sa kanilang mga kapitbahay para makapunta dito sa pag-asang pakikinggan sila at pagbibigyan ng kanilang mga kinatawan ang kanilang makatarungang kahilingan para sa makataong pabahay, sapat na serbisyo sosyal, at pagrespeto sa kanilang dangal at karapatan bilang tao.
Hindi po ako magtataka, Mr. Speaker, na kapag hindi natin nalunasan ang mga suliraning ito, magrerebolusyon ang mga taga Southville I katulad ng pagrerebolusyon ng marami pang dukha at inaapi sa ating bayan. Tayo po ang Kongreso ng Pilipinas. Kung wala tayong magagawa para sa mga taong ito, wala po tayong karapatan tawaging mga kinatawan ng bayan.
Maraming salamat po Mr. Speaker, distinguished colleagues.