Property owners still unpaid

SOME property owners affected by the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (CBRT) project are still waiting for compensation as the World Bank loan financing part of the project is set to close on Sept. 30, 2026, with Cebu City now reviewing their claims.

Kenneth Siasar, chief of staff of Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival, said at a press conference Monday, Sept. 21, that the City had received communications from affected property owners and was reviewing their complaints and documents to determine whether their claims could be processed under existing guidelines.

“There are still affected families who are having problems because they have not yet been given what is due to them,” he said.

Siasar said some private properties had already been cleared or vacated for the CBRT alignment, but their owners had yet to receive compensation.

Claims under review

Siasar said the issue was raised directly with Archival during a meeting with

affected parties.

Archival instructed the property owners to submit a list of claimants and the amounts being sought so the City could verify their documents, Siasar said.

The City is also checking whether the claims comply with guidelines established by the previous administration.

“If and when it is within the guidelines, then we will consider it,” Siasar said.

The City is coordinating with the council as it prepares measures involving the agencies working on the CBRT project, he said.

Right-of-way hurdles

The right-of-way acquisition has been a longstanding obstacle to the project.

In July, officials said the original Bulacao-Talamban alignment involved 121 properties, with 39 subject to negotiated sale and 82 requiring expropriation. Eight lots had been paid for at the time. The figures may have changed after subsequent revisions to the project scope.

The project packaging was later revised, with the Bulacao-Mambaling segment separated from the Package 2 trunk sections.

Archival also said in July that the National Government had allocated P900 million for property acquisition in the area surrounding F. Vestil St., a link toward the South Road Properties (SRP). The funds had been downloaded to the City, but payments were delayed by documentary requirements.

Loan nearing closure

The World Bank’s latest restructuring documents set the project closing date at Sept. 30, 2026, after the scope was reduced because several activities could not be completed within the remaining implementation period.

The restructuring canceled $59.9 million of the original $116 million International Bank for Reconstruction and Development loan and the entire $25 million Climate Transformation Fund loan. Civil works for Packages 2 and 3 were removed from World Bank financing after procurement had not begun, with right-of-way and resettlement delays among the reasons cited.

Package 2 covered the main BRT trunk sections, including the SRP–South Bus Terminal and Capitol–IT Park corridors, while Package 3 covered feeder routes linking Talisay City, Bulacao, SRP, IT Park and Talamban.

An earlier CBRT resettlement plan estimated that about 93,925 square meters, or 9.4 hectares, would be needed for project facilities, involving both private and public land.

Property acquisition is governed by Republic Act (RA) 10752, as amended by RA 12289, or the Accelerated and Reformed Right-of-Way Act. For foreign-assisted projects, applicable loan agreements and international safeguard requirements also apply.

With less than two weeks before the World Bank loan closing date, the City is reviewing the remaining property claims while continuing preparations for the BRT, according to Siasar. / CAV