31 Agta families in Santa Marcela, Apayao provided concrete subdivision houses

Santa Marcela, Apayao - Thirty-one (31) families from the Agta tribe in barangay San Juan, Santa Marcela now live in concrete houses with basic amenities.

The concrete 50 housing units under the Pabahay project of the National Housing Authority (NHA) were provided for Agta families who suffered from natural calamities and whose houses were totally destroyed by the recent typhoons that ravaged Nortehrn Luzon.

Said families mostly reside in the same barangay who formerly dwelt in houses made of bamboo and cogon grass but now sheltered in a more comfortable and safe dwelling place.

Each unit costs more than P300,000.00.  The construction of the project began in 2019 with a total cost of P20M wherein P16M was spent on the housing units and P4M was allocated to its cemented residential pathways and corridors.

Through the initiative of Mayor Evelyn B. Martinez, the Agta families were also provided with electricity apart from the food, clothing, and kitchen utensils given by the Local Government Unit.

Mercy Valdez, one of the Agta beneficiaries who represented the tribe in an interview on Thursday, January 23, conveyed her gratitude to Mayor Martinez for incessantly looking after their welfare.

“Agyaman kami iti tulong ti LGU nga idadaulwan ni Mayor Martinez ta saan nakami nga binaybay-an. Makaturog kamin iti nasimbeng iti rabii ta saan kamin nga matudtudwan ken adda payen iti kuryente mi, ‘’ she expressed.

According to Martinez, with the support of Congresswoman Eleanor Bulut-Begtang, more projects await these Agta members. These include the installation of water system and the possible opening of Child Development center for preschoolers.

In a statement, Mayor Martinez said the provision of convenient homes for the Agta people will improve and uplift the lives of the members of the underprivileged, economically and socially. She also commended the LGU offices, the Sangguniang Bayan, and the NHA for expediting the delivery of housing units for the IP beneficiaries.