Sunday, March 25, 2007 Cebu City Hall surprised, as 2 ‘owners’ stake claim to property within Inayawan By Rene H. Martel Sun.Star Staff Reporter
THE entire 17-hectare Inayawan landfill is not yet titled under the Cebu City Government’s name.
And two private entities have already staked their claim over the property, with one having 10 hectares surveyed and registered as a precursor to titling.
City Councilor Jose Daluz III said that one claimant even demanded rental fees from the Cebu Common Treatment Facility, Inc. (CCTFI), whose hazardous waste and wastewater treatment facility sits on 3,000 square meters of the landfill.
Alarmed, CCTFI offered to provide legal and technical expertise for the City Government to have the landfill titled under Cebu City’s name.
Daluz said this involves petitioning the courts to cancel the private claimants’ titles before the City can apply for a special patent.
He said the claim came as a surprise because the landfill used to be a foreshore area, which is owned by the National Government and cannot be privately titled.
Over time, with garbage filing up and other reclamation improvements of the landfill, the foreshore area got filled up.
Daluz said the City real property office was concerned because the landfill later on can be developed for other purposes, like Manila’s Smokey Mountain for example, which is now a “bustling commercial area.”
“It (landfill) has a lifespan of maybe five more years. It will serve as an area for development later on, especially that it is close to the SRP (South Road Properties),” the councilor said.
The City Council, however, deferred approving the resolution that sought to authorize Mayor Tomas Osmeña to enter into an agreement with CCTFI.
Daluz said various concerns were raised and the council opted to have CCTFI’s offer scrutinized by the City Legal Office, which was given until next week to submit its recommendation.
Lawyer Alberto Dico Jr., City real property officer, said there is a need to “preempt private individuals and entities from profiting from the City’s huge investment in the Inayawan landfill.”
The City invested P200 million for the landfill, he said, which can go to waste if the property ends up titled under a private entities’ name.
And CCTFI, whose 25-year lease contract with City Hall ends in 2022 yet, is wary of proceeding with its plan to lease an additional 2,000 meters to expand its operations, Dico said.
Daluz said CCTFI will shoulder all legal and technical costs of the titling application, thus sparing the City from having to set aside funds for it. (RHM)
