Question & AnswerQ&A (MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. 57)
The primary purpose is to direct the Secretary of the Interior and Local Government to immediately spearhead the transfer of informal settler families living in danger and high-risk areas to decent housing sites and pave the way for clearing clogged waterways.
The order cites Article II, Section 5; Article II, Section 9; Article XIII, Section 9; and Article XIII, Section 10 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution.
The State shall undertake, in cooperation with the private sector, a continuing program of urban land reform and housing to make available affordable, decent housing and basic services to underprivileged and homeless citizens and promote adequate employment opportunities, while respecting the rights of small property owners.
Eviction or demolition of dwellings shall only occur according to law and in a just and humane manner; no resettlement shall be undertaken without adequate consultation with the affected dwellers and the communities where they are to be relocated.
Local government units, in coordination with the National Housing Authority, shall implement the relocation and resettlement of persons living in danger areas such as esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dumps, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, and other public places.
The DILG carries the powers and functions of the former Department of Local Government, including exercising general supervision over local governments and assisting the President in such supervision.
Informal settler families are persons or families residing in danger and high-risk areas such as vulnerable waterways, railroads, esteros, dumpsites, or other public places without lawful right or title.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government shall coordinate with local government units, the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor, the National Housing Authority, and other relevant government agencies.
Dangerous areas such as esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dumps, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, and other public places.
Relocation and resettlement must be conducted in accordance with law, in a just and humane manner, including adequate consultation with affected families and the communities where they will be relocated.