More than a hundred urban poor and housing relocatees staged a protest outside the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) office in Quezon City on October 5, coinciding with World Habitat Day.
According to the report by RH Val Gonzales, the protesters opposed Republic Act No. 12216, or the new National Housing Authority (NHA) Charter, which they said could put relocatees at risk of eviction if they fail to pay their housing amortizations on time.
Relocates from Bulacan and Cavite said minimum-wage families could not afford monthly payments of nearly ₱4,000 under the expanded 4PH housing program. They also raised concerns that families could be forced out without adequate relocation options near their jobs and without sufficient basic services and social protection.
The group further criticized provisions they said could allow eviction without a court order and called for the repeal of what they described as an anti-poor measure.
They urged the government to pass a Comprehensive Public Housing Act with funding equivalent to 2% of the country’s GDP, halt the privatization of NHA lands, and establish in-city public rental housing for workers and low-income families.
