BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan underscored that the local government is firm on its verdant desire to preserve and protect the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) property near the city-owned Baguio Convention Center (BCC) as a tree park to serve its purpose as a breathing space of the city’s environment.
The local chief executive explained that a concrete evidence of the local government’s clear intention for the preservation of the GSIS property as a tree park was its previous offer to purchase the property from the State insurance corporation.
“We maintain our position that we will purchase the property from the State insurance corporation so that we will preserve it as a tree park and continue improving its current state through various interventions that will make sure that the trees are healthy,” Domogan stressed.
While the property is still titled under GSIS, the corporation still has the discretion on what to do with the tree park being a private property, thus, the local government previously signified its intention to purchase the area so that it will be the one to sustain its preservation and protection as a tree park.
Earlier, Domogan wrote the GSIS informing the corporation that the local government wants to purchase the property with an initial offer of P300 million for the conveuance of the same to the city.
GSIS eventually responded and informed the local government that the fair market value of the property was over P434 million which will be the supposed purchase price of the property.
Domogan narrated that the local finance committee decided to take the proposal of GSIS for the purchase of the property in the amount of P434 million but for still unknown reasons, the GSIS again increased the purchase price of the property to P670 million in a span of two months that casted doubts on the willingness of the corporation to pursue the said transaction with the city.
According to him, eventually, the GSIS wrote the local government that it is no longer willing to sell the property because it was looking for a partner that will develop the same to maximize its potentials in generating added resources for the government-owned and controlled corporation.
Domogan asserted the local government will try its best to continue making the necessary representations with the GSIS for the realization of the eventual purchase of the property by the city so that the fear of stakeholders that it will eventually be developed into a commercial center will be abated for the city to pursue its desire to continue making it as a tree park.
He expressed his gratitude to various sectors of the city who continue to support the intention of the local government to purchase the property from the GSIs considering that it is among the few remaining tree parks in the central business district area considering its importance in striking a balance on the state of the city’s environment.
The local government initially purchased from the GSIS the Baguio convention Center and the 1 hectare parking space within its vicinity with the use of its share from the development of the John Hay Special Economic Zone (JHSEZ) for the realization of the said agreement.
By Dexter A. See
Photo by: Armando M. Bolislis
