Council to DWUP chief: Explain 40 new workers

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City Council yesterday decided to invite Division for the Welfare of Urban Poor (DWUP) head Collin Rosell to appear before them during their regular session next week to justify the hiring of additional 40 new personnel.

The hiring of 40 new personnel will cost the City P904,690. The amount, however, includes some office supplies needed in conducting the re-registration of urban poor families and individuals who are staying in socialized housing sites that the City purchased at P500 million years ago.

Councilor Rodrigo “Bebot” Abellanosa had taken up the issue before the City Council but he failed to answer some questions from his colleagues.

Abellanosa even said that the 40 personnel already started working last September 21, although Rosell, in a follow up interview, said it’s not true that these 40 workers already started their work.

Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young had suggested to refer the matter back to the City Council’s committee on budget and finance under Councilor Margarita “Margot” Osmeña, but Councilor Jose Daluz III instead proposed to invite Rosell to appear before the City Council.

Rosell said had the city legislators read the supporting documents of Abellanosa’s proposed resolution, particularly the rationale that he prepared to explain the importance of hiring these personnel, there would have been no need for him to appear in the next session.

Each of the 40 personnel would be paid P320 a day for 70 days to revalidate or re-register the urban poor occupants in the city-owned lots, such as to determine whether they are legitimate members of homeowners groups accredited by the city.

Rosell also said the concerned personnel would be tasked to identify persons who illegally constructed structures in the city lots, and beneficiaries who sold their rights to other persons.

“Kanang 70 ka adlaw nga trabahoon sa 40 ka tawo para lang gani kana sa 15,000 ka socialized housing beneficiaries sa dakbayan, wala pa na’y labot sa ubang pamilya nga anaa nagpuyo sa mga kuyaw nga lugar sama sa tampi sa kasapaan, ilawom sa tulay,” Rosell said.

To properly address the housing needs of the said beneficiaries, Rosell said it is imperative to conduct a city-wide, barangay-based registration of socialized housing beneficiaries, re-registration and revalidation.

It was learned that most of the urban poor housing beneficiaries of the city are delinquent in the payment of their obligations that is why out of the P500 million principal that were spent for the purchase of lots, only more than P100 million have been collected so far.

Rosell said it is because more than half of the total number of homeowners’ associations that occupy the city-owned lots had no contract or had expired contract with the city so they are no longer paying their amortization. – (FREEMAN)