Iloilo city: The local government unveiled its flagship housing program ‘PASILONG: Pabalay para sa Pamilyang Ilonggo’ on Thursday, which will cover all housing initiatives in the city. “Pasilong, which means a place where one can find shelter or rest, is a game changer, not just for branding purposes but also for genuine public service,” Iloilo City Local Housing Office (ICLHO) head lawyer Peter Millare said in his message.

According to Philippines News Agency, under the program, they will build homes, construct climate-resilient and low-cost housing projects, strengthen community-organizing programs, and continuously form homeowner associations and registration with the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, among others. “Ultimately, we will be working hard for the security of tenure program through the processing of certificate of registration and license to sell, approval of subdivision survey plans for the relocation sites for titling,” Millare added.

Currently, there are 46 total relocation and resettlement sites in the city. They are available through a lot only, and house and lot packages, in collaboration with civil society organizations and national government agencies. During the launch, Millare announced that upon the approval of Mayor Raisa Tre±as, houses at the Iloilo Riverplains Subdivision in Barangay Lanit and Camalig in Jaro are free. The city government will only recover the cost of the lot and site development. The subdivision has around 1,000 occupants.

Tre±as also announced that they have in the pipeline more than 2,000 housing units. The city government also purchased more than 30,000 square meters of additional land in preparation for future housing programs. The launching was joined by various partners, including the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED); Henber Realty Development Corporation; EON Realty and Development Corporation; the Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG Fund); and City Councilor Mandrie Malabor, who chairs the Committee on Urban Poor, Human Rights, and Minority Groups.