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ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews/01 August) – The Housing and Land Management Division (HLMD) announced that 8,323 families displaced by the 20-day standoff between government forces and members of the Moro National Liberation Front last year are set to benefit from the housing assistance of the national government.
HLMD chief Rodrigo Pagotaisidro said Friday they have already identified the beneficiaries of the housing assistance as well as their location.
Pagotaisidro said the identification of the beneficiaries was made through the conduct of census and tagging at the evacuation centers and transitory sites.
There are five evacuation centers and seven transitory sites at present that are still housing thousands families who were displaced when hundreds of MNLF members loyal to founding chair Nur Misuari infiltrated several coastal barangay in this city.
Pagotaisidro said 405 of the 8,323 families were affected by the easement for road widening and from areas declared as “no return zone.”
He said the other families include owners of houses that burned down during the siege and house sharers.
He said they have prepared a plan to ensure the orderly transfer of the displaced families once the housing projects are completed.
The housing projects are being undertaken by private contractors through the National Housing Authority. (MindaNews)
