MAY 24 2021 ANG PROBINSYANO FULL HD REPLAY

 Manila City Mayor Francisco ‘Isko Moreno’ Domagoso signed a P10-billion loan agreement with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) to finance six grand infrastructure projects of his administration.

The loan was granted under the Omnibus Term Loan Facility or OTLF. The agreement stipulates that the funds “can be reallocated to projects in the approved Local Development Plan of the City Annual Investment Plan.”

The building projects include three schools — Dr. Alejandro Albert Elementary School, Rosauro Almario Elementary School, and Manila Science High School. They also include three residential buildings — Pedro Gil Residences, San Lazaro Residences, and San Sebastian Residences.

The residential buildings will be added to the local government’s ongoing housing development projects, which are primarily for underserved sectors.

Domagoso emphasized the need for low-cost decent housing for the City of Manila. “Housing is an urgent matter to be addressed by the state. I am referring to decent housing, hindi ‘yung parang bahay ng kalapati lang,” he said.

DBP President and CEO Emmanuel Herbosa was present at the loan signing ceremony held at the Tondominium 1 site, a project that is already a testament to Domagoso’s vision of housing developments for the city. DBP Executive Vice President Jose Gabino Dimayuga, DPB Senior Vice President Madeleine Aldana, and DBP First Vice President Rox Morales were also in attendance.

The P10 billion loan is in addition to the P5 billion loan that DBP already granted to the LGU under Domagoso’s administration back in January 2020.

To recall, the P5 billion loan was also used to fund the LGU’s various infrastructure projects — which included the 15-story Tondominium 1 and Tondominium 2 residential buildings. The two buildings have a total of 336 apartment units. Each 44 sqm. unit, which will accommodate one family, will have two bedrooms.

Aside from Tondominium 1 and Tondominium 2 — which had their groundbreaking ceremonies on June 1, 2020 — the LGU’s other ongoing housing projects are the Binondominium residential building and the townhouse-style horizontal housing project BaseCommunity.

Domagoso remarked, “Ang gobyerno ay may kakayahang pataasin ang antas ng pamumuhay ng tao. Ang gobyerno kayang ibalik ang dignidad sa pamumuhay ng isang mahirap. Lagi kong ipinapaalala sa inyo, ‘di baleng tayo’y mahirap basta wag maging dugyot. Di bale tayo’y mahirap, basta’wag mawalan ng pag-asa. Mangarap tayo.”

The mayor went on to add that the LGU’s housing program would also be made available to renters. “Hindi lang po ito pang-mahirap,” he explained. “While 70% of this will be occupied by the poor, 30% of it will be occupied by renters. ‘Yung mga nangungupahan, pwede na rin magkaroon ng sarili nilang tahanan. Pipilitin namin mayakap lahat.”