Demolition in Apas today? 168 families set to lose homes

CEBU, Philippines - Tension is expected to grip Sitio San Miguel Barangay Apas, Cebu City today with the homes of 168 families set to be demolished.

The demolition is set to push through after the Court of Appeals (CA) Cebu Station dismissed the petition to nullify and set aside the writ of demolition.

The 4.6-hectare property where the houses sit is owned by Mariano Godinez. This area has been designated as Lot 937 and he filed a civil case to reclaim the said property in 1997.

Godinez presented to court a reconstituted title proving that he is the owner of the said property.

The property used to be where the Philippine National Police Regional Training School in Central Visayas (PNP-RTS) was located.

Security

Apas barangay captain Ramil Ayuman told The FREEMAN that he has already coordinated with the Cebu City Police Office to provide additional personnel to keep the peace in the area.

“As much as possible we have isolated the children and the elders to go near the area,” he said.

Ayuman added he will be appealing for the court sheriff to postpone the demolition as the occupants of the said property have pending motion for reconsideration before the CA.

“I believe these people were not given due process,” he said.

However, he said to avoid any tensions, he will deploy fire trucks, barangay tanods and the police.

CCPO Director Melvin Ramon Buenafe went to the area yesterday to do an ocular inspection.

Order to vacate

Earlier, Associate Justice Myra Garcia-Fernandez ordered the settlers together with the PNP-RTS to vacate the said property after the dismissal of the petition for certiorari, prohibition and mandamus for lack of merit.

Cleared from charges were RTC Judge Olegario Sarmiento, retired court sheriff Antonio Bellones and lot owner Mariano Godinez.

Fernandez, in her decision, ruled the occupants failed to present proof that they have the legal rights over the property.

Fernandez likewise lifted an earlier preliminary injunction that stopped the demolition.

It was the Archangels Residents Mergence Inc. (ARMI), formerly known as Four Roses Neighborhood Association Inc., which filed the petition.

The ARMI appealed the decision of the lower court before the CA stating the court made a mistake in the issuance of the writ of demolition.

The residents refused to vacate the lot saying they have been occupying it since 1960s. They claimed the lot has been identified as a socialized housing site by the Cebu City Government via Resolution 99-4771 dated January 30, 1999.

City officials

Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young and other officials from Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) were at the area yesterday to talk to the residents.

Young said that they would be sending lawyers to the court hoping to hold off the demolition.

Last Saturday, Atty. Collin Rosell, head of the Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP), was also at the area and asked the residents to join him when they head to the court today to follow up on the request for extension filed by Mayor Michael Rama last week. — with Jessica Ann R. Pareja/NLQ (FREEMAN)