Family claims ownership of lot at Panola

ILOILO City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog has instructed all agencies and offices to check records on the claims of heirs of Pablo Araneta Buenaflor in owning more than one hectare of land at the Parola area at Fort San Pedro.

Mabilog said the lot in question was already titled to the City Government of Iloilo after a Presidential Proclamation was issued by President Benigno Aquino III.

The lot will be used for the multi-million peso Panola Terminal Project, which will be built by Double Dragon Corp., set to be started within this year under a public-private partnership.

Mabilog said the same family from Bacolod City is also claiming ownership of the lot of Molo Plaza in Molo district.

He said the city has preserved a 1903 document showing the ownership of the lot in question by the National Government. However, the Buenaflor heirs showed documents dated 1907 showing ownership of the lot.

The National Government has developed the port area as docking site of bumboats bound to the island province of Guimaras. The Philippine Coast Guard district office is also located in the area while a commercial port and container yard occupy the other half of the lot.

Mabilog assured the Parola ferry terminal project will go on as scheduled after documents are approved from the public-private partnership council. (Lydia C. Pendon)