Tuesday, August 21, 2007 Mayor takes up west coast ancestral domain issues
Mayor Celso Lobregat gathered Monday some west coast barangay officials, City Council members, representatives from the Subanen Indigenous Cultural Community and concerned agencies for a meeting on ancestral domain issues.
Specifically discussed during the meeting according to Lobregat was the ownership claim by some individuals of 9,000 of the total 15,000 hectares of Zamboanga Economic Zone property in San Ramon and of about 10 kilometers of water from the shoreline of barangays Limpapa to Patalon.
"We met today (Monday) (to discuss about it) and the City Government will come out with a position paper to be submitted to the NCIP (National Commission on Indigenous Peoples)," Lobregat told the media after the meeting.
Present during the meeting were the chairmen of barangays Labuan, Patalon and Limpapa, representatives from the Zamboanga Economic Zone and Freeport Authority, and Subanen Indigenous Cultural Community, some members of the City Council, and city department heads.
Lobregat said the matter has to be extensively discussed to find out what moves should be taken concerning the issue.
Ecozone representatives asserted that the agency has a complete list of people staying within the contentious area, according to the mayor.
Lobregat also convened the city's zoning Board for a regular meeting to discuss requests for reconsideration of various local government policies and regulations.
The requests for reconsideration are related to applications for business permits, locational clearance, and other requirements based on local ordinances and the building code. (Sheila E. Covarrubias)
