QC North triangle residents hold vigil vs impending demolition

Fearing demolition, residents of the Quezon City (QC) North Triangle held a vigil Wednesday night to condemn their impending displacement to give way to an Ayala-led QC Central Business District (CBD) project. Urban poor group Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) earlier condemned the 340-hectare project, saying it will encroach on part of the 37-hectare residential area in Sito San Roque and displace some 6,000 families. The P22-billion project is a joint venture between Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) and the National Housing Authority to develop 29.1 hectares of North Triangle aimed at making this part of QC a central business and commercial district. The NHA, which owns the North Triangle property including Sitio San Roque, issued on September 15 a seven-day notice of demolition for the community. Wednesday marks the seventh day of the notice. While relocation at a housing site in Rizal province was offered, residents have refused to move, citing difficult living conditions, high transportation costs and lack of amenities, such as electricity and water, in the proposed site. Kadamay said some of the residents voluntarily transferred to the relocation site in exchange for P1,000 from the NHA. Vice President and housing czar Jejomar Binay earlier met with Quezon City officials, including Mayor Herbert Bautista, and residents of the area to iron out relocation plans. Kadamay said they are expecting the demolition team, including police personnel, to arrive in the area as early as 8:00 a.m. Thursday. The over-all CBD project has been described as a “the biggest, most modern and most strategic CBD in the country covering… prime land hemmed in by East Triangle, North Triangle, Veterans Hospital and the University of the Philippines." The Trinoma Mall and the UP-Ayala Technohub along Commonwealth Avenue are part of the completed infrastructure components of the project.—Jerrie M. Abella/JV, GMANews.TV