PAGIBIG urged for special considerations for 93-1 lots

MANILA, Philippines —  Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia has appealed to the Home Development Mutual Fund office (PAGIBIG) to make considerations for residents of the 93-1 lots so they can qualify for their loan requirements.

In an executive session last week, several residents of 93-1 appeared before the Cebu City Council to express their long-standing grievances, citing that their concerns have not been addressed for many years.

In the discussion, Councilor Joel Garganera acknowledged that while a housing plan from Pag-IBIG has been created for the residents, the actual settlers did not qualify due to the standard requirements.

According to Garcia, this has already been the direction of the Cebu Provincial Government, as it owns the said lots, while Cebu City, he pointed out, is just there to assist.

“Ang role gud sa Cebu Provincial Government as the owner of the land mao gyuy dako kaayo og say, mao ng one of the options there looking into is that mu loan sila sa PAGIBIG, unya ang PAG-IBIG nay mubayad sa Provincial Government, aron win-win na tanan,” said Garcia.

Likewise, Garcia acknowledged that the guidelines of PAGIBIG are “very strict” and that their effectivity will be imposed retroactively, making it more difficult for the existing homeowners association.

He explained that the existing homeowners association residing on the lots covered by Provincial Ordinance 93-1 was established based on the guidelines set by PAGIBIG at the time, which dates back to the 1980s or 1990s.

“Ang tanang guidelines sa PAGIBIG ilang gisunod during that time, but thereafter, PAGIBIG made new laws, unya karon ang new laws sa PAGIBIG ilang i-apply, retroactively, para nako sayop sad na,” said Garcia.

Citing specifics, Garcia said that the previous PAGIBIG guidelines mandated subdivisions to comply with a one-meter rule, which has now changed to a 1.5-meter rule. Homeowners who already established their structures based on the previous requirements may face problems in meeting the current standards.

“Luoy kaayo tong mga homeowners nga ni tuman na sa one-meter rule, dili na nila maisbog og 1.5 kay daghan na kaayog balay ang maigo,” Garcia explained.

With this, Garcia appealed to PAGIBIG not to impose retroactive enforcement of the new guidelines to avoid impacting those who had complied with the old guidelines.

“I think mao nalang na ang last hurdle nga atong gitrabaho,” said Garcia.

To recall, in December 2016, then-Mayor Tommy Osmeña and then-Governor, now Vice Governor Hilario Davide III, signed a Memorandum of Agreement for a land swap between the City and the Province, covering 32 hectares of province-owned lots under Ordinance 93-1 located in several Cebu City barangays.

The lots subject to the agreement also included 1.5 hectares in the Department of Agriculture compound along M. Velez St.; 2,358 square meters on Gorordo Ave. in Barangay Lahug; and 577 square meters on Don Gil Garcia St. in Barangay Capitol Site.

The 93-1 beneficiaries are from barangays Kamputhaw, Capitol Site, Kalunasan, Busay, Luz, Lahug, Mabolo, Apas, Lorega, San Miguel, Kasambagan, and Tejero.

In a report by The Freeman on March 15, 2023, the Cebu Provincial Board, on the other hand, revoked the Memorandum of Agreement and subsequent deeds of donation entered into between the Provincial Government of Cebu and the Cebu City government concerning the lots under Provincial Ordinance 93-1.

The resolution, authored by PB Member John Ismael Borgonia, cited as reasons for the revocation the “defective” lot donations and the continuously failed land swap negotiations between the two local government units.

According to Mayor Garcia, his aunt, Cebu Provincial Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, has been talking to the occupants and PAGIBIG simultaneously, which proves that the land swap was indeed revoked.