Angelle De Leon
President Rodrigo Duterte has called on landlords to temporarily stop collecting rent from their tenants amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
In an address aired in the wee hours on Thursday, Duterte said no one should be evicted for failure to pay house rent during the quarantine period.
“Nagmamakaawa ako sa inyo, huwag ninyong pilitin ang mga tao… Kasi talagang mag-e-engkwentro tayo,” he warned.
“Hindi talaga ako papayag. ‘Wag ninyo akong pilitin to go against the law,” he added.
The President has threatened to burn down the apartments of landlords if they pressure tenants to pay rent or worse, evict them from their homes.
“Kung hindi mo naman pala gustong tumulong, sunugin na lang natin ‘yang mga apartment mo. ‘Wag ganun. ‘Wag ninyong i-pressure,” he noted.
Duterte said he received reports that some landlords have “pressured” tenants to pay their rent despite the lack of money as they could not work.
“Marami na pong report sa akin na ‘yung mga taong ngayon na magtitira sa upahan na mga bahay ay they are being pressured to pay,” he said.
“Alam mo, lahat tayo nawalan ng income so I’d like to ask the owners na kung maaari to suspend ‘yung sa bahay,” he added.
The President then urged landlords and lessors to consider the welfare of their tenants and suspend the payment of rent, while the quarantine measures are in effect.
He noted that he will intervene in preventing landlords from evicting tenants for failure to pay rent since it is his duty to protect and preserve the nation.
“Huwag mo muna hingiin kasi wala talaga. And whatever na nasa kamay ng mga tao ngayon, they are saving it for the rainy days to come,” Duterte said.
“Kung magsabi na i-evict mo ang tao ngayon sa bahay, sabihin ko ‘wag mo sundin ‘yan. Hindi ko sana gusto ng anarchy but this time makialam ako sa lahat ng opisina. It is because my duty is to preserve the nation,” he added.
The President said he would personally tell the landlord to allow the tenant to stay in the house amid difficulties in paying rent.
“Itong panahon ng COVID at gawin mo ‘yan, magsasalubong tayo. I-evict mo ‘yang tao, personal kong puntahan sabihin ko ibalik mo ‘yang tao,” he noted.
“Do not tempt the gods dahil ‘pag hindi ito naayos, ang COVID, mapurnada talaga lahat,” he added.
The government has placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine or lockdown until April 30, restricting people’s movement to contain the spread of the virus.
Other areas outside Luzon have imposed their own lockdown policies.
As of April 9, the Department of Health has recorded 4,076 cases of COVID-19, 203 deaths, and 124 recoveries.
