BACOLOD City Legal Officer Joselito Bayatan said Thursday, August 2, that the City Government will not demolish the Barangay 3 hall.
This is because there are proper legal protocols that they should observe to address the complaint.
Bayatan said the complaint should be addressed to the officials of Barangay 3 because there was the admission in the letter that the property belongs to Barangay 3 and by further reference, there was a barangay resolution accepting the donation of the road lot from the Capitol Subdivision.
On July 30, Jose Max Ortiz, legal counsel of Ma. Gizela Palomares-Ablaña, sent a letter to Mayor Evelio Leonardia requesting for the removal of the two-story barangay hall and the day-care center, which are all constructed on the road lots owned by Capitol Subdivision Inc.
The letter stated the structure has caused disturbance to their client for years due to the noise pollution, as well as the inconvenience of having full access to her lot.
They are hopeful that the City Government will heed to their request that the said structures be removed within 30 days from receipt of the letter, it added.
Bayatan said: “It needs a legal sanction to do a demolition. We cannot just demolish a property where there is a claim of ownership by another entity.”
“I think that problem can be properly addressed without demolishing the structure. Noise can be addressed in many ways. If they want to demolish the structure, they need to go to the court, it’s a legal issue. They should bring this to the proper court against the barangay,” he said.
He added the City can only act on matters of a clear public nuisance especially when it comes to the structure that can be easily removed.
On July 27, the Office of the Building Official (OBO) in Bacolod City also served a notice of violation to village chieftain Bob Asan of Barangay 3 for the construction of the barangay hall without a building permit and certificate of occupancy.