CEBU - Retired general turned environment advocate Tiburcio Fusillero has reiterated his call to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to enforce the law that protects the watershed area.
This time, Fusillero is calling DENR to act on several letters and complaints raised against the project of the Salimbangon family intends to put up in the mountain barangay of Cebu City because of its alleged threat on the environment and possible displacement of residents.
Reports said that 23 percent of the 80 barangays in Cebu City are totally or partially located in the watershed areas.
Fusillero said that for certain “unexplainable” reasons, the Salimbangon family was able to acquire around 60 hectares of land within the watershed area, just like the other rich private individuals who harassed him in the recent years.
But the Salimbangons, in a text message, denied the accusations, saying they had planned to put up a vegetable farm in the land that they bought in the area.
Cebu fourth district Rep. Benhur Salimbangon, in a separate interview, said that he already asked the members of the Philippine National Police to arrest anyone caught cutting the trees illegally.
“We do not allow anybody from cutting trees, these are just allegations,” he said.
The Salimbangon family owns around 48 hectares of land in the area.
Rep. Salimbangon added that they will look into the allegations and will discuss it with Fusillero and the residents in the area.
Fusillero said that the land purchased by the Salimbangon family and the rest of the new land owners, are posing danger to the watershed and eventually to the water supply of the residents of the mountain barangays. “Unsa man gyu’y mandate sa DENR nga dili man sila maminaw, why are they not looking into the rampant selling of tax declarations of land within the watershed,” Fusillero said.
He said he went from one office to another starting with the Central Cebu Protected Landscape Office (CCPLO), Protected Area and Wildlife Division (PAWD), the Regional Technical Division head of the Forest and Management Service (RTD-FMS) Isabelo Montejo and then to DENR Regional Executive Director Leonardo Sibaluca to raise their concerns but to no avail.
Fusillero landed at the headlines several years ago after he was accused of being a “land grabber” and a “forest bully” when he allegedly harassed workers of private entities who now own the parcels of land.
He, however, proved that he was a holder of a memorandum of agreement with DENR to do reforestation and preservation of 504 hectares of land inclusive of barangay Cantipla.
Sibaluca said he would look into the matter as soon as he gets information from his men. — Ferliza C. Contratista and Mitchelle L. Calipayan/WAB (THE FREEMAN)