VP NOLI SAYS FOOD MORE IMPORTANT THAN SHELTERS
May 14, 2008

Vice President and Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) chairman Noli ‘Kabayan’ De Castro said arable lands should not be used for housing especially during these times when the country is faced with rice shortage problem.

Even when there is no rice shortage, De Castro said lands meant for agriculture should not be touched for housing purposes since he believe that food is more important than shelters.

Speaking during two land awarding ceremonies in separate locations in Pampanga recently (May 12), De Castro gave this opinion when asked what he would prioritize as a government official between the government’s housing backlog and rice shortage.

While there is indeed a problem in the supply of rice, De Castro admitted that the government is also racing against time to beat its backlog in housing.

Out of the 3 million housing unit requirement of the country, only one million is going to be accomplished by the government since De Castro took over the helm of HUDCC until 2010.

De Castro, who is on top of all government shelter projects including the national relocation program, said more than 300,000 housing units are being constructed every two years since 2004.

‘By this time, I think close to 600,000 housing units have already been provided to our poor and homeless countrymen all throughout the country,’ De Castro said.

However, he maintained that such a backlog doest not warrant the transformation of agricultural lands into housing sites.

‘HUDCC will make sure that arable lands will not be sacrificed in the government’;s effort in providing shelters to the homeless,’ he added.

De Castro visited Sta. Ana and San Fernando , Pampanga where he distributed certificates of lot allotments (CELAs) to more than a thousand beneficiaries of the asset reform program (ARP) and community mortgage program (CMP) of the government.

The ARP provides for the utilization of various non-core properties of the Philippine National Railway (PNR) for socialized housing while the CMP facilitates the purchase of private properties for the use of informal settlers.

While in Pampanga, De Castro also monitored prices of basic goods and commodities at the Sta. Ana public market.

During his inspection, he noted that prices are normal and the same compared to those in Metro Manila.

The Vice President also made sure that the rice distribution outlets of the National Food Authority (NFA) were present.

At least two NFA rice outlets were found at the Sta. Ana public market.

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