ALFONSO LISTA, Ifugao —The management of SN Aboitiz Power Magat has denied the serious allegations of several land owners affected by the P900-million Magat River Irrigation System Optimization Project on the alleged unfair settlement scheme in the acquisition of private properties that will be submerged with the completion of the project in the future.
Lawyer Mike Hosillos, SNAP vice president for corporate affairs, belied the allegations of the affected land owners, saying that such actions taken by the land owner through his lawyer is an alleged form of harassment that could open the floodgates to the filing of a case of subjudice against them.
The SNAPM official revealed that of the 192 affected land owners, the company was able to settle almost all of them except for Magalgalit’s client who allegedly demanded a compensation of P25 million for them to waive their rights over their agricultural farm that will be submerged by the project.
He explained the MARIS optimization project is a product of an operation and maintenance agreement signed between SNAP Magat and the National Irrigation Administration.
“We will not buckle down to the excessive demands of the affected land owners because they want to derail the project which will be beneficial to the greater majority of farmers in the lowland communities,” Hosillos stressed.
Hosillos cited the MARIS optimization project is a government project which should be unduly delayed simply because of the unsettled claim of a single claimant that is why they will explore all available legal means in order to get rid of the problem that will guarantee the smooth implementation of the optimization project.