TACLOBAN CITY- The National Housing Authority (NHA) here in the region has reported that 139 families were transferred to their permanent shelters, close to three years since they totally lost their houses due to supertyphoon ‘Yolanda.’
Dorcas Secreto, estate management specialist and community relations officer of the NHA, said that the 139 families who were living in their transitional houses were resettled to their permanent houses located in Villa Sofia and Villa Diana, two of the city’s resettlement sites for families whose houses were washed out due to Yolanda.
Last Monday (October 3), 68 families living at the transition houses were resettled to their permanent houses at Villa Sofia in Barangay Tagpuro.
Another 71 families were relocated last Friday (Oct.7) to their new homes in Villa Diana, located in Brgy. New Kawayan.
Councilor Aimee Grafil, who chairs the committee on urban poor and housing resettlement of the city council, said that the families need to be transferred considering the onset of rainy season.
“These families really wanted to transfer to their new permanent houses despite lack of electricity. Their units are already dilapidated,” Grafil said.
She added that the city government under Mayor Cristina Romualdez wants to see all families still living in temporary shelters be moved out to their permanent shelters at least by the end of the year.
The 135 families joined the 2,000 Yolanda survivors in these permanent houses at the northern barangays.
The transfer was spearheaded by the city government of Tacloban after several meetings and consultations with the members of the Sub Local Interagency Committee (Sub-LIAC) of which NHA is a member.
These families are from Suhi Badato TRS; New Kawayan LGU Duplex 1 and Duplex 2; Operation Blessing (OB) in Sto. Nino village and 3 Operation Compassion TRS transitional shelters
The NHA has built 1,000 permanent concrete houses a Villa Sofia, Ridgeview and Diana.
The families were reminded that once they settled at their permanent resettlement areas, they will be responsible in maintaining cleanliness in their surroundings, peace and order within the community. (VICKY C.ARNAIZ)
