Lot owners offer properties for dislocated families
AT least six lot owners signified their intention to sell their properties to be used as relocation sites for families living beside the riverbanks in Cebu City.
Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak said he was thankful for the offer days after he appealed to lot owners to sell their properties for the sake of families that were displaced by last Tuesday’s flooding.
Several families in barangays Tisa, Mambaling, Duljo and Labangon were evacuated after heavy rains caused the Guadalupe and Kinalumsan rivers to overflow in the city’s southern district.
Tumulak heads the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDRRMC).
Three lot owners from Inayawan, one from Cogon, one from Basak Pardo and one from Quiot said they were willing to sell their properties.
Tumulak said the city government, through the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), will evaluate the locations of these lots to ensure that these areas are suitable for relocation.
The lots will also be appraised to determine their value and should not be prone to flooding or to landslide, Tumulak said.
At least eight hectares will be purchased to be used as relocation for the displaced families.
Tumulak said they will also buy lots in Cebu City’s northern district for families living near the Mahiga creek and other rivers in the north.
He said the initial figure showed that 3,000 families need to be relocated.
“Every time it rains and then floods, we go through the same routine. We do preemptive evacuation but we cannot do this always. We need a permanent solution,” Tumulak said.
Tumulak said the P20 million fund from the council is ready and the lots will undergo public bidding. He said the families should not rebuild their homes at the rivers in order to qualify as beneficiaries.
“Magtinabangay ta, dili na sab nato angayang basulon kining mga tawhana nga namuyo diha kay nakahibawo ta, kon kwartahan pa sila dili na sila mopuyo diha (Let’s help each other. It’s not right for us to blame them. We know that if they have the money, they won’t live there),” Tumulak said.
He said the families will each have their own space but they will spend for building their homes.
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