BIBAK Lot Demolition Set
June 27, 2015
BAGUIO CITY – The City Government is set to demolish 58 illegal structures at the Benguet-Ifugao-Bontoc-Apayao-Kalinga (BIBAK) lot along Harrison Road.
Mayor Mauricio Domogan said the city buildings and architecture office under city building officer Engr. Nazita Banez issued notices to the owners to voluntarily vacate and dismantle their constructions otherwise government forces will undertake the demolition on August 11-14.
Banez said the BIBAK building will not be torn down but will just be padlocked.
The mayor expressed hopes that the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor will no longer object to the move after its commissioners personally saw the situation in the area particularly the fact that the area is occupied by poor residents but by “unscrupulous individuals profiting from a government property.”
The city’s bid to clear the lot measuring about 5,000 square meters is supported by the from former leaders of the BIBAK Student Dormitories Inc., the Regional Development Council and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Cordillera.
The city earlier planned the demolition but was held back when PCUP chair Hernani Panganiban asked Domogan to defer the implementation of the planned demolition of the structures pointing out the need to observe proper procedures and to ensure that the rights of the owners will not be violated taking into consideration the settlers’ claim that they are members of the marginalized sector and have been occupying the BIBAK compound since 1982 and thus are qualified to stay in the area or be granted relocation privileges under Republic Act 7279 or the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992.
The City however said the lot needs to be cleared as it was intended for BIBAK housing needs and that the present occupants are private individuals who entered the property without permission and are now utilizing the area for profit.
The said lot was segregated from Original Certificate Title No. 01 in favor of the BIBAK Dormitories Inc. in 1961 and thus “was slated to cater to the housing needs of the students coming from the BIBAK areas.”/A Refuerzo
