Bulacan folk displaced by NorthRail relocated this month

In the wake of controversies surrounding the 76.4-kilometer NorthRail project, Vice President Noli de Castro vowed yesterday to finish the in-city relocation of affected families in Bulacan by the end of the month.

This, as De Castro, concurrent chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, belied accusations that there was lack of consultations and overpricing in the purchase of relocation sites for the affected families.

"I dare those who refuse to be relocated to come and see me so I can explain this to them," he said, adding that those who are complaining may not be legitimate relocatees.

"We have a list of the qualified relocatees; let us check if those complaining are on the list," he said.

Federico Laxa, general manager of the National Housing Authority (NHA), said the Bulacan segment of the NorthRail project would affect 8,158 households and 10,644 structures.

These families will be relocated in six sites — dubbed as Northville 3 to 8 — across Bulacan.

On allegations that affected residents have to pay P500 so they could be included for relocation, De Castro said, "I do not know about the P500 fee, but we do not do that. There is no P500 fee. And I assure everyone that they will not lose their lots; we have enough lots for all. We can even accommodate more."

The NHA has earmarked P6 billion of its resettlement fund for the relocation of some 40,000 families to be affected by the construction of the NorthRail, which would run from Caloocan City to Clark Field in Pampanga.

Laxa said some P1.5 billion has so far been spent for relocation.

As of Oct. 12, he said at least 10,000 families had been relocated in in-city resettlement sites.

The number included 7,297 qualified relocatees from Caloocan, Malabon and Valenzuela, which account for a total of 12,878 families which would be relocated to Northville 1 and 2.

Meanwhile, the NHA and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority have forged a memorandum of agreement to integrate and complement their respective development agendas in the light of the North/South Rail development project.