The Department of Environment and Natural Resources on Friday cancelled its 2002 supplemental agreement with the developer of the Masungi Georeserve, a watershed area in Tanay, Rizal.
“In the signed letter of cancellation of the department, we are demanding Blue Star to vacate the area that has a size of 300 hectares, where the Masungi Geopark area is located,” Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs Norlito Eneran said on Friday.
“The general idea is for the DENR to take control of this area as well as the other agencies that have a right over this area,” he said when asked if the government would dismantle the geopark.
In a letter sent to Blue Star Construction Development Corp. proponent Ben Dumaliang, the DENR cited the three grounds for the agreement’s cancellation: (1) the lack of the required Presidential Proclamation declaring the subject matter of the contract for housing purposes; (2) no document to prove that the proposed construction went through regular procurement or bidding process, and (3) failure to deliver the 5,000-unit Garden Cottages housing project within five years from signing on Nov. 15, 2002.
The DENR official explained that the housing units should have been located in Lot 10, where the Dumaliang family built recreational structures and currently operates the Masungi Georeserve, which charges visitors for day treks to caves, stone formations, trails, and rope bridges.
The envisioned Garden Cottages project was originally intended as housing for government employees, including those from the DENR, Department of Education, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of National Defense, Department of Transportation, Office of the President and Presidential Management Staff.
Instead, the land is now used as a venue for weddings and pre-nuptial shoots for which the Dumaliangs also charge a fee.
“Multiple investigations by different administrations have found irregularities in the awarding of Blue Star’s contracts,” Eneran concluded.
Upon learning of the cancellation, Masungi Georeserve Foundation Inc. quickly fired back at the DENR, saying the agency has apparently sided with “land grabbers, illegal quarries, and powerful vested interests.”
“While it continues to approve destructive quarries, private resorts, and industrial projects that irreparably harm our watersheds, it is using taxpayer money to target Masungi Georeserve—a globally recognized conservation initiative,” it said in a statement
“Let us be clear—it is the DENR who is at fault here. It has stubbornly refused to carry out its contractual obligation to clear the area of large-scale illegal occupants, liens, and encumbrances, causing delays to the project and significant injury to its private sector partner,” the foundation added.
Masungi Georeserve also disputed the DENR’s claim that the deal with Blue Star was flawed because it did not involve public bidding.
“Under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s directive, the 2002 Supplemental Joint Venture Agreement (SJVA) contributed an additional 300 hectares (Lot 10/Masungi Georeserve) to the project. This expansion is based on the provisions of law, which allows a government project to be expanded or extended without additional bidding under certain conditions,” it said.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “DENR cancels contract with Masungi Georeserve contractor.”