FOR Bacolod City Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran, only the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) can settle the dispute between the officials of Barangay Banago and the company of Bacolod City Councilor Vladimir Gonzalez.

This, after tension filled the venue of the public hearing at the barangay’s covered court yesterday, September 8.

Familiaran said the public hearing was conducted to shed light on the alleged reclamation project conducted by the company of Gonzalez at Purok Bayanihan.

Present during the public hearing were Gonzalez, barangay officials, the affected residents along with other government agencies.

Familiaran said the DENR failed to attend the hearing so it’s not yet determined if the company of Gonzalez occupied the city’s property.

Barangay Banago chairman Ricky Mijares earlier said Gonzalez failed to secure a permit at the barangay council for the conduct of the project which he claimed to be a reclamation.

Mijares also reported the incident to Police Station 3 on August 26 this year, claiming that it destroys the shoreline protection.

“When I was a village councilman, I saw that shoreline protection was already damaged so I requested the CEO to rehabilitate the area. But now, the company of Gonzalez destroyed the area owned by the city,” Mijares said.

Gonzalez said his company was doing a recovery embankment project at their titled property in Barangay Banago and it’s different from the reclamation project for the village's proposed port development which was earlier given a Resolution of No Objection (Rono) by the Bacolod City Council.

“The portion where Mijares was complaining about the alleged reclamation is not part of the port development,” Gonzales said, adding that “the recovery embankment is a private property that was recovered by our company.

Familiaran said both parties explained their sides, but they will wait for the DENR to survey the area.

“The authorized agency to decide and to inform the public if its correct or not is only the DENR,” he said.*