PRESIDING Judge Manuel Cardinal of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 49 in Bacolod City extended on Friday for 18 days the 72-hour temporary restraining order (TRO) he issued against Mushroom Development Corp. to stop the development and construction of the Bacolod Safari Zoo and Resort in Barangay Alangilan.
Mushroom Development Corp., which do business also under the name and style RFC Metro Inn and Yaku Moo Restaurant, is represented by its president Francis Rey Cabuga.
Another respondent is Engineer Isidro Sun Jr., officer-in-charge of the Office of the Building Official, who was restrained from issuing a building permit to defendant corporations and Cabuga without compliance with the mandatory requirements prescribed by law.
Cardinal ordered the 18-day extension during the hearing on Friday of the application for preliminary injunction by petitioners Alangilan councilmen Alex Sausi, Roy Retiza and Donaldo Alimpolo, who are represented by their counsel Roem Arbolado.
Lorenzo Alminaza, counsel for Sun, said the issuance of the TRO does not mean that the case filed by the three Alangilan councilmen has merit.
He said they were all required by the court to submit their respective memoranda within five days.
Alminaza said the petitioners also asked for another five days from receipt of the memoranda to submit their comment.
“So the TRO was extended without any resolution yet. After that, the judge will rule on the case,” he said.
Cabuga was represented by his lawyer Cecilia Quebrar Soriano.
The 72-hour TRO was issued by the court Wednesday following the complaint of the barangay officials that included a prayer that a TRO be immediately issued enjoining, restraining, or prohibiting defendants Cabuga and Sun, their agents and representatives from continuing with the development and construction of the facilities, buildings and other structures of whatever kind on Lot Nos. 1581-B-2, 1581-B-3 and 1581-B-4 in Alangilan.
These properties are the site of the Bacolod Safari Zoo and Resort.
The petitioners pointed out that Cabuga failed to secure locational clearance pursuant to the Zoning Ordinance No. 216, Series of 1998; Department Agrarian Reform conversion clearance under R.A. 6637 as amended by R.A. 9700 (Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law as amended); Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and other required clearances under existing laws.