BAGUIO CITY—Mayor Mauricio Domogan criticized the officials of the Presidential Commission on the Urban Poor (PCUP) for failing to consult the local government before requesting the deferment of the demolition of the more than 58 illegal structures within the premises of the Baguio-Ifugao-Benguet-Apayao-Kalinga (BIBAK) property on Harrison Road.
Domogan said the latest request of the PCUP to defer the demolition of the illegal BIBAK structures scheduled this week without hearing the side of the local government was unfair and unjust because the new set of PCUP officials have been misled into believing the complaints of the informal settlers.
“The matter has already been passed upon by former PCUP officials and the new set of PCUP officers should have studied the problem before coming out with the deferment request,” he stressed.
While the local government can just ignore the deferment request and pursue the demolition of the illegal structures, the mayor claimed there was still a need for the city to submit its comprehensive answer to the request and argue that the squatters are not registered as members of the urban poor, and that the structures built are being used for business purposed.
Domogan claimed the informal settlers are already confused on what to do because they again filed a petition for a temporary restraining order before the local courts when a similar petition was earlier dismissed by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 5 that stated that the informal settlers have no right to be in the government property without the appropriate titles to the land and the required building permits for their structures.
According to him, some of the informal settlers have approached him and signified their intention to allow the dismantling of their structures but some of their colleagues disagreed with their plan and instead decided to fight it out with the city through all legal and administrative means.
It can be recalled that no less than PCUP Chairman Herminigildo Panganiban and two commissioners conducted an investigation on the reported squatting within the 5,000-square meter property and found that the informal settlers were not members of the urban poor and that the area was a health hazard because it was unsanitary.
Domogan said the the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has ruled on the issue in favor of the local government and it is being fully supported by the Regional Development Council in the Cordillera that passed a resolution supporting the removal of the illegal structures so the place can be used for its prescribed purpose of providing a temporary shelter for students from different parts of the region who study in the city.