Estrañero asks DHSUD to put up horizontal housing program in Tabuk

TABUK CITY, Kalinga – Mayor Darwin Estrañero asked the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) to consider the cultural and geographical profile of Tabuk in the implementation of its new housing program for low-income families.
The local chief executive said people in rural Kalinga may not be inclined to avail of the Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Housing (4PH) program, which aims to implement vertical housing development to solve the country’s housing woes, pointing out that a horizontal type of housing program is more appropriate in more rural areas like Tabuk and Kalinga.
“As we all know, in Cordillera, particularly in the city of Tabuk, ket naglalawa iti daga ken dagiti tattao dituy [they may not be] open to having a condo unit with a minimum of 25 square meters,” Mayor Estrañero told the team of the DHSUD-Cordillera during the orientation about the housing program on July 12, 2023.
Vertical housing refers to high-rise apartments and condominiums that are typically seen in highly urbanized areas while horizontal housing refers to individual houses built on small plots of land.
The 4PH program focuses on developing low to mid rise buildings (up to 20 stories) with the size of each unit ranging from 24 to 27 square meters.
“I think at this point in time, the city of Tabuk and even the province of Kalinga is not yet ready when it comes to this housing project, which is why we are purposely asking you if you can recommend to the DHSUD to go back to the original plan [of horizontal housing],” he said.
For its part, the DHSUD-Cordillera said they understand the sentiment, noting that it is not the first it has been raised by local governments in the Cordillera.
Karen Poligrates of the DHSUD-CAR said local governments may still propose horizontal housing for the approval of the DHSUD.
The 4PH is a flagship project of the current administration that aims to construct a million housing units a year for the next six years to address the country’s housing gap of 6.5 million units.
Under the program, beneficiaries enjoy a more affordable monthly amortization of as low as Php 3,800 per month with the Interest Subsidy that will be shouldered by the national government.
The local government acts as the main proponent and major player in the planning, implementation, and management of the housing project. It is also up to the local government to set the eligibility criteria and identify the beneficiaries.
The local government unit (LGU) may choose among the following financial modalities to implement the project: the LGU as developer – finance, build and enroll beneficiaries to the 4PH interest subsidy; national line agencies (NHA) and NHA/SHFC as developers – community mortgage program (CMPY / community-based initiative approach; private sector as developer -Turnkey Arrangement (Land acquisition, site development, housing construction); local government and private sector thru joint venture or public private partnership; and NGA/GOCC and LGU thru Joint Venture.
Poligrates said most LGUs choose to implement the program under a Public Private Partnership with a private developer.
A few 4PH housing programs are underway in Cordillera including the Tawang Housing Project of the municipality of La Trinidad, which aims to provide 10,000 units of housing to residents affected by construction of infrastructure projects, and the Valley of Colors Housing Project of Baguio City that targets to build 490 housing units for solo parents and artists.