On Tri-Island Land Row: Guv assures Moalboal residents she will help protect their rights

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia assured legal assistance to protect the rights of the residents of barangays Basdiot, Saavedra and Tuble in Moalboal, where a real estate company allegedly owned by a crony of the late Ferdinand Marcos claimed a vast area of land.

Garcia yesterday held a consultation with the residents of the three barangays and said she would not allow an intruder to the province to step on the rights of her constituents.

Garcia instructed provincial attorney Marino Martinquilla to help the residents file a case against Tri-Island Holdings to settle the land ownership issue. One of the options considered by the residents is to bring the matter to the court as pauper litigants so that they would be spared of the filing fee.

The governor also got the assurance of Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, chief of the firearms and security office, that the barracks of the Grandeur Security Agency in barangay Saavedra will be demolished today.

The security agency's accreditation has been revoked by the Moalboal municipal government after their guards, who were detailed in the land holdings claimed by Tri-Island, were accused of attacking the residents few days ago. At least four people were injured in the said attack and the security guards have already been charged in court.

It was also found that the agency is illegally operating in Cebu because it does not have a branch here but is maintaining more than the number of employees allowed by law. Tri-Island could not also enter into a contract with the agency because its registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission has already expired.

Tri-Island Holdings claimed a vast area of land in barangays Tuble, Basdiot and Saavedra in Moalboal town saying these lots were acquired by the late Dr. Rebecco Panlilio in the 1970s and 1980s for only 10 centavos per square meter.

The residents in the area, however, say otherwise and added that the real estate company only surfaced lately when there was a road opening in the area. The company admitted that it has not used the lots for more than two decades. - Fred P. Languido