BAGUIO CITY – The city government will treat the requests for the suspension of already issued demolition orders on a case to case basis to prevent the issue from being used for the personal and political interests of aspiring politicians using the issue of demolition for the advancement of their respective interests.
Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan said unless there are compelling reasons, there is no reason why scheduled demolitions will not push through even if the dates fall within the 45-day campaign period.
“We have to circumspect in dealing with the requests for demolition and it will now be up to the people to appreciate our efforts to curb the proliferation of squatters in the different barangays of the city,” Domogan stressed.
The local chief executive explained demolition orders are only suspended if both parties come together and agree for the amicable settlement wherein the informal settlers will pay the lots that they were able to occupy from the private owner pursuant to the agreed purchase price.
In the case of public lands, it is the government that is the complainant against the informal settlers and unless that the land squatted upon is alienable and disposable, then it could be subjected to the processing of award to the qualified homelot applicants.
According to him, the problem of lands being squatted upon in the city is complicated that is why the city has to deal with the private complainants and the informal settlers on a case to case basis to settle their rifts.
He disclosed that there are also instances when there is already an existing agreement between the land owner and the squatters but the property owner requested for the issuance of a demolition order against the squatters because what they want is for the squatters to pay a higher buying price of their land compared to what was agreed upon, saying that what will prevail in such case would be the binding agreement that was previously signed and that the owner could not just deviate from what had been agreed upon.
The city building and architecture office (CBAO) was tasked by the city mayor to investigate the proliferation of structures in the city’s 128 barangays which were not issued the appropriate building permits before they were built to compel them to secure such permits in order to legitimize the construction of such structures within their properties.
He added that unless restrained by the courts or subjected to deferment, demolition orders will be enforced by the city demolition team pursuant to existing rules and regulations in order to send a message to informal settlers that the local government means business in the enforcement of laws against squatting.
Domogan appealed to individuals wanting to buy lands in the city to be extra careful because they might end up being hoodwinked by land speculators who actually do not have the lands to sell but are trying their best to enrich themselves at the expense of innocent buyers of properties in the city.
By Dexter A. See