CEBU CITY, Cebu —After decades of uncertainty, 76 individuals in Camotes Islands, including several residents who are now retirees and senior citizens, were given the titles to the lots they had occupied since time immemorial or inherited from their parents or grandparents.

The tiles were issued by the Cebu Province Registry of Deeds in coordination with the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office and the congressional office of Cebu District V representative Vincent Franco ‘Duke’ Frasco.

“At the heart of our efforts to help secure the issuance of these land titles is to bring justice to families who have long toiled on these lands,” Frasco, husband of tourism secretary Maria Esperanza Christina Codilla, pointed out.

“The people of Camotes deserve a life of opportunity and stability. That includes upholding their rights of ownership over their lands. Makahatag kini ug dugang nga mga opportunidad alang sa pag-angat sa kinabuhi sa mga taga Camotes ug sa ilang mga pamilya,” the lawmaker stated after the distribution in a mixture of English and Cebuano.

Shortly after he was elected to office, Frasco had prioritized his advocacy in the cause for land ownership in Camotes that was earlier classified as timberland.

In 2019, he authored House Bill No. 4785, that was passed on third and final reading by the Lower Chamber the following year, to declare dry lands in Poro, Pacijan and Ponson in Camotes Islands as alienable and disposable lands.

“Sa dugay na nga panahon, ang mga lumulopyo sa Camotes wala nakatagamtam og igong kalamboan tungod kay dili mabaligya o matitulohan ang ilang mga yuta. Pinaagi niining balaodnon, aduna nay paglaum nga moangat ang ekonomiya sa Camotes,” Frasco said when he filed the bill.

In addition to the distribution of the land titles, Frasco likewise distributed ₱3.3 million worth of cash assistance to some 904 habal-habal, tricycle and trisikad (pedicab) drivers.

Moreover, 154 scholarship grants were handed to students in San Francisco town, which is consistent with his priority of providing opportunities for educational and social welfare advancement in Camotes and the entire fifth district of Cebu.

Prior to this in October last year, Frasco had turned over ₱23 million worth of financial assistance to eight private hospitals who accommodate indigent patients

“This program is designed to provide crucial support to individuals in need of financial help during their hospital stay,” he concluded.