It’s “all systems go” for the construction of in-city housing units under the administration’s Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) Program, a House leader said.
House Appropriations Committee chair Elizaldy Co said Congress, as part of its oversight function, conducted site inspections of the 4PH housing projects in San Mateo, Rizal; Novaliches, and Caloocan.
“Under the leadership of Speaker Martin Romualdez, kami sa (we in) Congress, part of our function is to make sure that the priority projects of the administration are not just well-allocated ang budget but also, nagagawa yung mga projects (projects are implemented),” Co said in a Facebook post on Feb. 23.
Co noted that the project implementation in these in-city housing sites has progressed significantly “in just one month”.
The 4PH Program is the flagship program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. aimed at building 1 million housing units annually until 2028 to address the country’s housing backlog pegged at more than 6.5 million units.
“These condominium style housing projects are part of PBBM’s Legacy Project. Aside from Metro Manila, the 4P’s housing project is simultaneously done in different regions all over the country,” Co said.
The housing program involves the transformation of informal settlements into prime residential sites and waterfronts and the rehabilitation of esteros, according to the administration’s 2022 year-end report.
Among the features of the program are in-city resettlement, high-density/vertical housing emphasis in highly urbanized areas, utilization of idle government lands, and support of government financial institutions (GFIs) and private banks to provide development loans and end-user financing, among others.
The 4PH program is designed to address the need for decent housing and to build on the potential impact of a robust sector on the growing economy.
Informal settler families (ISF) shall be temporarily relocated to the government staging areas for at least one to two years while the 4PH project is under construction.
All ISFs shall be permanently transferred to their new housing area once completed.
The Department of Human Settlement and Urban Development has 170,000 units or 55 projects in different locations in Metro Manila that are ongoing construction. (PNA)
