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RELOCATING displaced residents like those in Apas and the burned lot in Lahug, falls squarely on the local government, Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal said yesterday.
He said people evicted from their homes should be provided with a relocation site.
?The government must prepare a place for them (displaced families) where there is light, there is water,? Vidal told CEBU DAILY NEWS yesterday after a Mass held to celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of the Rule in Lapu-Lapu City.
?They cannot just be ejected. That is unjust,? he added referring to about 50 families occupying a lot in sitio San Jose, barangay Lahug , where fire razed a lot owned by the UP-Visayas Cebu College.
Vidal serves in the Commission on Reconstruction organized by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for areas devastated by typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng.
?We prepared 1,000 houses in Rizal (province). They were beautifully made. The people would only have to pay P200 per month, later on,? he said.
Vidal also said he understands the dilemmof the displaced residents and the school.
?By law, they can not stay there. What can we do? That place they are living on is not theirs. Of course, it is different when it is land reform. But how can you land reform the campus of a college??
In response, Cebu City administrator Francisco Fernandez said everyone, not just government, should pitch in to relocate displaced families.
?I was taught from the teachings of Pope Leo and confirmed by Pope Benedict VIII, that a right to private property is never absolute, it has a social function,? Fernandez told CDN.
He said they will still consider Cardinal Vidal's suggestion in meetings with city and UP officials.
Rep. Raul Del Mar of Cebu City's north district said while he understands Vidal's concerns, relocating families poses problems especially if the affected residents complain about the relocation sites.
?They own the lot, but their right is also limited, they can't just use their right in threatening the people, evicting people by fire, it is against human rights?, Fernandez said.
Lahug barangay captain Mary Ann Delos Santos told that she subscribed to Vidal's stand saying it is the government and the barangay in particular that should help the displaced Lahug families.
Elsewhere, the Alliance of Barangay Community Association (ABACA) in Apas hosted a mass at the Barangay Apas Sports Complex yesterday evening to ask for divine intervention in their case filed against the Capitol.
The Apas residents and the Cebu City government petitioned the court to issue a temporary restraining order on the agreement signed between Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and then Defense Secretary Gilbert that facilitated the transfer of the Central Command (Centcom) to Mactan Benito Ebuen air base.
The residents feared that they will be displaced following the camp's transfer.With a report from Correspondent Carine M. Asutilla
