Broadcast journalist Abner Mercado will dig deeper into the rapid growth of illegal settlements in Metro Manila despite the government’s pro-poor housing programs tonight (May 31) in “Krusada.”

Over 580,000 families in the metro are considered illegal settlers or ‘iskwater.’ However, the National Housing Authority (NHA) is only able to relocate only 30,000 families annually due to the government’s low budget allocation for public housing projects.

Abner also found out that many of these informal settlers come from the provinces who sought better opportunities in Manila because of the scarcity of jobs at home. According to them, living in the metro’s so-called danger zones has also forced them to live in constant fear of fires and demolition projects.

“Informal settling is just one of the roots of the country’s problems, such as unemployment. There are no employment opportunities in the provinces so many of them move to Manila to seek greener pastures,” said Abner, whose documentary won a Bronze World Medal for “Krusada” in the Social Issues/Current Events category at the prestigious New York Festivals (NYF) International TV and Film Awards 2012.

Abner will also examine Virlanie Foundation’s “Balik Probinsya Project,” which seeks to send informal settlers back to their hometowns and help them get their loves back on track.

Because it takes more than words to take a stand, watch Abner’s report in “Krusada” tonight (May 31) after “Bandila” on ABS-CBN or watch it earlier on DZMM TeleRadyo (SkyCable Channel 26), 9:15 p.m.