President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. challenged the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), and the Home Development Fund (Pag-IBIG) "to build the most number of housing units by any Administration."
Marcos made the challenge during the Pag-IBIG Fund Chairman’s Report for Year 2023 on Tuesday, February 27, at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.
The chief executive praised Pag-IBIG for providing housing loans worth Php 126.04 billion, providing short-term loans to 2.65 million members, collecting loan payments worth more than Php 142 billion, and recording total assets worth Php 925.61 billion.
Marcos also highlighted that Pag-IBIG recorded a gross income of Php 77.21 billion, a net income went of Php 43.79 billion, and dividends of Php 48.76 billion.
"But you and I all know that we are far from declaring mission accomplished. We have inherited a huge housing backlog that must be reduced," the president said.
"The challenge before us today, including those in the Pag-IBIG, the housing sector, and the local government units, is to translate these statistics into actual homes that people can live in," he added.
Marcos also urged the Pag-IBIG to make home mortgage financing even more accessible while assuring the sustainability of the fund.
"This is to inspire Filipinos today, and the generations to come, to work hard to reach their goal of a house that they can call their own," the chief executive stressed.
"With millions of our countrymen denied the right to decent shelter, the stakes could not be higher," he remarked.
Marcos also promised that the government will actively pursue the implementation of the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Housing Program.
The chief executive said that the program "continues to address the need for decent housing and to build on the potential impact of a robust sector in the growing economy."
