Northrail Project: Eviction of 2,800 more families along railroad tracks on

ANGELES CITY — The National Housing Authority (NHA) and the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) are serving starting today notices of eviction to some 2,800 families squatting along old railroad tracks in Malabon to pave the way for the Northrail project.

NHA general manager Edgardo Pamintuan, however, assured the families that both agencies have enough funds to provide them each with a P100,000 loan for a 50-square-meter lot, a P50,000 housing materials loan, and a P25,000 livelihood loan.

"This is on top of another P50,000 housing loan that they might want to avail themselves of," he told The STAR in a telephone interview yesterday.

"It’s a tall order, but before the term of President Arroyo ends, we want to see 13,500 more families along railroad tracks from Calumpit, Bulacan to Clark Field, Pampanga also moved to new homes in areas that are being developed," he said.

"Our objective is to provide 15-meter clearances on each side of the old railways to be used for the modern Northrail," he added.

Bulacan resettlement site

He said the NHA and the HUDCC have already transferred some 300 families along the railroad tracks in Sangandaan, Caloocan City to the 60-hectare Towerville in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.

"Some went back to their provinces, while others opted for the loans available to them at Towerville," he said.

According to Pamintuan, the loans are payable in 30 years at six percent interest per annum. Amortization for the P100,000 loan for a 50-square meter lot is P250 a month for the first year, increasing to a maximum of P550 on the sixth year.

"If the beneficiary avails himself of all the loans, he would be paying only about P940 a month on the sixth year," he said.

Pamintuan said the affected families are entitled to free connection of water and electricity to their new homes that would otherwise cost them about P2,500.

Also, their belongings would be transported for free to their resettlement site, sparing them from the normal transport cost of P10,000.

Pamintuan said a 17-hectare former fishpond in Tanza, Cavite is now being filled up as an alternative resettlement site for the Malabon families.

Some of them, however, could still opt to move to Towerville where hundreds of lots are still available, he added.

Extended deadlines

He said all the families to be affected by the Northrail project have been told to move out as early as 1997.

"We informed them about this last Jan. 15, and we have extended deadlines several times. But we can no longer postpone the plans," he said.

He said the government has complied with the provisions of the Urban Housing Development Act in relocating the affected families.

The NHA and the HUDCC are utilizing some P100 million from the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) for the dismantling of structures along the railroad tracks and providing assistance to the affected families.

Pamintuan said the Department of Budget and Management is set to release another P300 million for the same purpose, in line with President Arroyo’s directive.

"Some of the funds will come from the debt payments of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport 3 to the BCDA," he said.

The National Development Corp. (NDC) is set to float bonds to raise some P4 billion for the Northrail project.

Pamintuan said the detailed engineering design for the project is now up for approval by the National Economic Development Authority.

"We need the two-track modern railway. The Philippines is probably one of the few countries which still have no mass transit system which is vital for development," he said.