No funds to demolish old BIR building – Erap

MANILA, Philippines - The city government of Manila does not have the funds to demolish a condemned building in Port Area, even after residents expressed fears that it would collapse following a 6.3-magnitude earthquake last Friday, Mayor Joseph Estrada said yesterday.

Estrada, in a telephone interview with The STAR yesterday, said the city government does not have funds for the purpose of demolishing the old Bureau of Internal Revenue building.

“The money spent for that is for the educational fund. The city government can do nothing about it. It is educational fund, so it has to be spent on the education of the Manileños, especially the poor, which is also of utmost importance,“ he said without elaborating.

The city government owns the building while the Philippine Ports Authority owns the lot on which it stands.

Employees and staff of business establishments in the vicinity of the building, including The Philippine STAR, have expressed serious concern over their safety should the building collapse.

The building, completed in 1965, was designed by Jose Maria Zaragoza, posthumously declared National Artist for Architecture in 2014.

Being at least 50 years old and designed by a national artist, the building is considered an important property under the National Heritage Act.

Since assuming office in 2013, Estrada has poured almost P1 billion into the city government’s disaster risk reduction program.

Among the newest procurements by the city government are a P30-million mobile command center, a hazardous material vehicle, a heavy-duty rescue truck, an amphibious truck and a mobile kitchen.

Estrada said funds are being set aside for the purchase of additional sets of equipment that will be forwarded to each of Manila’s six districts to shorten response time in case of emergencies.