Financial support pours in for Taguig housing project

The Taguig City government announced yesterday both the private sector and non government organizations (NGOs) would be providing financial support for a housing project that aims to benefit low-income earners in the city.

Taguig Mayor Sigfrido Tinga said Community Innovations, a subsidiary of Ayala Land Inc., will be donating P17 million to subsidize some of the housing units under the project "Family Townhomes" through the Lightomorrow Foundation.

Bernard Dy, Community Innovations president, said they decided to contribute to the housing program because their organization "is strongly committed to making a significant impact in communities they are part of, not only from a business standpoint, but also from a social development perspective by supporting and working closely with the local government in community-building projects."

Another property developer, Megaworld Corp., will donate P10 million in an effort to also help alleviate the plight of the poor.

De La Salle University’s Batch ’82 have pledged to donate to the project a sizeable amount from the proceeds of an 18-hole golf tournament at the Canlubang Golf and Country Club next year.

Kilusang Diwa ng Taguig will likewise donate P1 million while Pacific Plaza Towers will extend an amount of P450,000 to the Lightomorrow Foundation to subsidize more units for the poor.

"We are looking at a one-to-one relationship between the donor and the beneficiary so they know exactly who will benefit from their generosity. The contribution is not a dole out, but a downpayment on somebody’s future," Tinga said.

The project will entail the construction of 30,000 decent housing units in 10 years to help bridge the gap between the rich and the city’s poorest homeless residents.

Under the Family Townhomes program, the city government will put up affordable low-rise buildings in various locations, with each building composed of eight to 12 residential units.

The beneficiaries will pay through an easy financing program with a monthly amortization that will range between P600 to P1,500 for a maximum period of 30 years. Some of the units will be subsidized through fund-raising efforts by the local government and NGOs supporting the project.