Mabalacat City—Housing Secretary Eduardo del Rosario has assured the members of the Home Mutual Development Fund or Pag-IBIG Fund under the informal economy of housing loans provided that applicants have to present the needed requirements.
“It is our mandate to provide decent housing for both informal and formal settlers,” said Del Rosario on the sidelines of his first out-of-town visit at Xevera-Mabalacat City, a township community being developed by the Westchester Development Corporation.
It was gathered that more than 40 percent of the country’s economy is being supported by the informal sector and it contributes largely to the government coffers. Besides, it is the mandate of the government to provide decent housing for the people.
Under the informal economy are the professionals such as physicians, architects, media etc., who have been disqualified for housing loans due to the lack of requirements being asked from them, said an observer whose application was turned down because he failed to show a certificate of employment and proof of income.
Hundreds of housing loan applicants at Xevera-Mabalacat have been turned down by Pag-IBIG Fund due to the lack of required documents.
Del Rosario said the Pagibig Fund is targeting 1.4 million houses to fill up the backlog for both sectors. The private developers cater to the formal sector and only 25 percent is addressed by the government.
He said the Pag-IBIG Fund has a process to follow and must not go beyond what is allowed by the government. The Social Housing Finance Corporation and the National Housing Authority are the agencies that look into the housing issues of members of the informal economy.
Mayor Cris Garbo said that more than 800 housing units will be constructed by the local government unit in Mabalacat City to accommodate the housing requirement of the informal sector.
Garbo has yet to identify the location for the mass housing project being proposed to the Pagibig Fund and Social Housing Finance Corporation.
“Once applicants are validated by the LGU or by the mayor, no requirements will be needed, and besides, napakaliit ng borrowing interest rate,” Del Rosario told reporters.
The key for this project, Del Rosario said, is the participation of the LGU which will provide the lot for free for the beneficiary.
Pag-IBIG Fund President & CEO Acmad Rizaldy Moti said housing loan applicants must show proof of their capacity to pay, that is why the government requires them to show proof of income.