Abaca members drop settlement

CEBU, Philippines - The Alliance of Barangay Apas Community Association (Abaca) has dropped its earlier settlement with the provincial government, saying that they have to follow the orders of their lawyer Benjamin Militar.

Capitol consultant Rory Jon Sepulveda, in a press conference, said that they were supposed to meet with the Abaca members yesterday to discuss their proposal with Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, but Abaca president Marilyn Paracuelles had sent a text message that they are not attending.

But even that, Sepulveda said that the Capitol is “not making a decision as of the moment,” and that they will still wait for Abaca to come to them to continue the negotiation.

Last November 5, after a closed-door meeting with the governor, Paracuelles along with her other officers and members came out from the conference room of the governor’s office teary-eyed and smiling at the same time after arriving at a win-win solution with the province.

The meeting had allayed their fears that they were evicted from the province-owned lots after Garcia in that meeting had welcomed proposals from them on how they would go about with the situation.

The province had already initiated plans on recovering its more than 80-hectare property in barangay Apas currently occupied by the Central Command. In this property, is also where the 1,200 families, members of Abaca, have erected houses to the area declared by President Arroyo in 2003 as socialized housing.

The governor however had assured them that the province would retain the most densely populated, while those who are scattered would be transferred to this area.

This was agreeable to the Abaca in that meeting with her.

But last week, together with the Cebu City officials, Abaca joined with the filing of the civil suit against Vice President Noli de Castro, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Jr; and Garcia in connection with the two agreements signed to return the 80-ha. property to the province.

They claimed that the property is part of the Friar Lands reserved for “public services and use” only.

 Last month, Garcia signed with Teodoro a memorandum of agreement for the transfer of the CentCom to Lapu-Lapu City at the province’s expense.

Under the MOA, CentCom will return the property to the province which was donated by the province to it in October 1959.

The city government, in the complaint, alleged that Garcia refused to recognize Presidential Proclamation 409 which declared about 32 hectares of the property as socialized housing areas.

Meanwhile, Sepulveda said that if Abaca wants to resolve the matter in court, the province “will put on hold” the negotiation with them. As for Norberto Gonzales, Acting Secretary of the Department of National Defense, he said to sit down with Garcia and Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña if necessary to tackle the heated issue on the Apas lot.

Gonzales, who visited the CentCom in Lapu-Lapu yesterday, also planned yesterday to make a phone call to both officials regarding the issue.

Gonzales made the plans as he is concerned with Apas residents. “We sympathize with them. We will see what we can do,” he said. — Liv G. Campo and Niña G. Sumacot/MEEV (THE FREEMAN)