DSWD readies additional  30

bunkhouses up in Masepla TS

ZAMBOANGA CITY (ZNS)-The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has committed to construct an additional 30 bunkhouses at the transitory site (TS) in Masepla, Mampang that can accommodate over 700 families more.

If this will be accomplished, decongestion of the Joaquin Enriquez Memorial Sports Complex (JEMSC) can be realized given the other temporary measures being implemented by humanitarian partners in cooperation with the local and national government.

The commitment was made by DSWD Assistant Secretary Vilma Cabrera in a meeting with Mayor Beng Climaco in City Hall recently.

Last July, Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman pledged to allocate P5 million for the construction of a proposed transitory site at the 25-hectare HGL property in Kasanyangan.

Mayor Climaco is hopeful that with all the interventions in place and the collaborative efforts of the concerned agencies in the implementation of the temporary and as well as the permanent solutions, the R.T. Lim Boulevard and the JEMSC will be cleared of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in due time.

The Masepla TS at present has 30 bunkhouses and is occupied by 518 families with a total of 2,653 individuals. The bunkhouses were constructed by the DSWD and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The Masepla property has a total area of 22.5 hectares but only 5 hectares have been developed.

Assistant City Administrator Elmeir Apolinario Ph.D., head of the temporary shelter cluster said DSWD wants to develop the remaining area to accommodate people from the grandstand and to eventually clear the latter.

Last Monday, the IOM in partnership with the local government broke ground for the Buggoc Challenge, a bayanihan build for the Sama de Laut in sitio Buggoc, barangay Kasanyangan. With the help of private partners, the project aims to construct 200 houses for the Sama families now temporarily staying at the shoreline of R.T. Lim Boulevard.

There are a total of 7 transitory sites in operation at present, these are located at the grandstand, Rio Hondo, Taluksangay, Tulungatung, PTSI property in Upper Calarian, Masepla in Mampang and the Silsillah Dialogue Movement property in Paniran, Sta. Catalina. (Sheila Covarrubias) (091714)