Sunday, April 15, 2007 NCIP recommends award of first Ifugao ancestral domain title
KIANGAN, Ifugao -- The first Certificate of Ancestral Land Title (Calt) application here was recommended for awarding by a task force organized by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP).
Marilyn Guimbatan of the NCIP said the first Calt application to be completed is that of the Bolhayon family of Sitio Upla in Barangay Julongan is represented by Ret. Colonel Victor Bolhayon.
As per NCIP records, the land applied for is the inheritance of Bolhayon from his mother Balbina, who also inherited the land from her ancestors. It was found out that the applicant is actually the third generation to inherit the land from Dutngu, who is said to be the original owner of the land.
Filed in 2005, the land applied for by the family covers an area of 3,061.45 meters. The Special Provincial Task Force (SPTF), which was constituted on November 7, 2006, assisted the NCIP in the execution of the directives of the Ancestral Domain Office (ADO) for field validation and the production of lacking documents and proofs required for the processing of applications for the Calt, Guimbatan said.
The SPTF is composed of representatives from the Department of Agrarian Reform, Department of Environment and Natural Resources and from the local government unit of Kiangan and the NCIP.
Guimbatan said the task force had been conducting information education and consultation on Ipra and Calt application, ocular inspection on the site applied for, boundary conflict resolution and validation of proofs. The activities were participated by tribal elders/leaders and community members of the barangay.
With a total population of 454 and with 21 sitios, barangay Julongan is composed mostly of the Tuwali tribe. Records obtained from the barangay showed there are only 22 non-Ifugao Tuwali who are mostly migrants in the area through marriages.
The land, which is located on the side of a mountain, is recommended by the task force that a Calt be awarded in the name of Bolhayon family after carefully reviewing and evaluating the claim in accordance with the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997.
The award of the Calt is an indication that the national government is really concerned about the plight of the indigenous peoples, Guimbatan said.
