MARAWI CITY, Lanao del Sur (PIA)–Addressing concerns relating to the requirements for the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the city’s most affected area (MAA), Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) Secretary and Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) Chairperson Eduardo Del Rosario alongside City Mayor Majul Gandamra firmly conveyed the significance of the required building permit for the reconstruction and repair of properties in the ground zero.
Del Rosario explained that such a document will resolve the drastic conflict on ownership wherein an area is seen to have ten or more house owners but upon tracing, the lot where all of these properties are supposed to be situated belongs to only one legitimate owner as reflected in the mother title.
With this, the government necessitates the house owners to obtain consent from the said lot owner who is just usually their relative to allow them to repair or reconstruct their properties.
“That is where the problem starts when there is a conflict between those who would like to apply for a building permit and the consent of the landowner, who are siblings or relatives in the first place, because when the land title was awarded to the one named on the title and it was subdivided among the family numbers. The issue is actually between relatives,” disclosed Del Rosario.
Such an issue was affirmed by Gandamra as he detailed the nature of the conflict on ownership in the city which the local government is dealing with.
“With regards to the conflicting claims, iyon ang nagiging challenge natin dahil mismo isang pamilya nag-aagawan sa kanilang lupain because of the mother title, before the siege, hindi pa nasegregate. Ngayon, nasira na ang kanilang pamamahay, kailangan ng consent because we are recognizing iyong mga nakasulat doon sa titulo,” he said.
[With regards to the conflicting claims, that becomes our challenge because even a family scrambles for their land because the mother title, before the siege, was not segregated. Now that the houses were already destroyed, they need consent because we are recognizing those written in the title.]
Gandamra further said that apart from the Land Dispute Committee, the local government engaged its City Assessor and related office to address related problems so that if such are already resolved, a certification will be forwarded to the Office of the Building Official (OBO) notifying the office that although the land is not yet duly segregated, house owners can already start their operation with the power vested by the land owner’s consent.
While suggestions are also raised asserting that the return of the residents to MAA in the soonest possible time can be simultaneous with that of processing the building permit, Del Rosario expounded that the event would be disorderly and may lead to peace and order issue if they allow anyone to enter without clearing first from the local government unit if they are rightful owners or not.
He further maintained that to avoid disputes on the ground, a process has to be followed and residents should not be worried about this as the city government already waived some of its prior requirements just to fast-track the issuance of the document.
The TFBM chief also guaranteed that in October, IDPs can already enter sectors four to seven given they already have a building permit approved by the OBO following the completion of the construction of the road networks.
“Kaunting patience nalang. What is the difference between one to two months? Kapag natapos na ang road networks at naisarado na ang canals, fully opened na iyan. October, maybe 20% to 30% papasok na. By November, full na ang pagpasok nila provided there is a building permit from the local government,” said Del Rosario.
[Just a little patience. What is the difference between one to two months? If the road networks are already done and the canals are already closed, that will be fully opened. October, maybe 20% to 30% will already enter. By November, there will be a full entrance provided there is a building permit from the local government.]
More than 2,000 building permit applications were already submitted to the city government wherein more than 1,000 of these applicants were issued the necessary document based on the requirements, including the land title and other proof of ownership. Of these approved applications, about 500 residents have commenced their operation in MAA wherein 100 of such have already finished their repair or reconstruction of properties. (CRG/PIA Lanao del Sur)
