Press Release
October 18, 2009

CHIZ: ENSURE JOBS, LIVELIHOOD FOR RELOCATED
WATERWAY SETTLERS

Opposition Sen. Chiz Escudero yesterday called on the government to ensure there will be jobs or livelihood in the relocation sites for the informal settlers who are now the subject of forced removal from waterways all over Metro Manila.

"Relocating these waterway settlers per se will not solve the problem. The government should provide them livelihood where they will be transferred. Otherwise, it will only be a band-aid solution to a very serious problem," Escudero said in a statement.

President Arroyo this week has ordered a forced relocation of thousands of families living on riverbanks and other high-risk areas in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

The move was prompted by the severe flooding that occurred in the metropolis during the onslaught of typhoon Ondoy for which blocked waterways such as canals, esteros and creeks were blamed for the near unprecedented rise of water. Escudero said that while the move would help solve Metro Manila's flooding problem, it would potentially create a bigger predicament if those relocated will not have a viable livelihood program in the area where they will be moved.

"These settlers remained in these waterways because it is within the metropolis and near their sources of income. There is really a need to remove them from these water paths, but of equal importance is to ensure that they would not go back," the 40-year old senator said.

He added that the government should also ensure that the relocation sites are viable for housing a self-sustained community and that that the homes that will be built for these settlers would be sturdy and not made of substandard materials.

"We should avoid taking them out of the frying pan only to be thrown into the fire. The national government should guarantee that their relocation is better than their present situation," Escudero said.

News Latest News Feed