Residents ask city's help to stay in Young's lot

CEBU, Philippines - Some 72 families in barangay San Antonio is seeking the intervention of the Cebu City Government so they can continue staying in the property they are occupying for over three decades now.

The lot is located on Junquera Extension going to Pelaez Street and is now owned by the family of Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young.

The residents want the city government to expropriate the property, expanding almost a hectare, which was declared by the Cebu City Council as among the areas for socialized housing program in 2001.

But Young said he does not think his mother, Salud Young, will agree to sell the property.

“Can they afford it? Mahal man ang yuta diha. If they can afford it, then the city has no business with these people,” Young said.

The residents hope that the Vice Mayor will look into their plight since he is serving as a city official.

Vice Mayor Young said that the case has been ongoing for three decades now and a lot has happened along the way.

He said his parents even received rude treatment from the residents. The vice mayor said that the bad experience they had with these people will never convince his mother to sell the lot to them.

“They cannot afford it. Even if they do, we don’t really need the money,” Young said.

Councilor Jose Daluz III said that the Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor will facilitate the filing of the pleading to allow the city government to intervene in the case.

He said the city can negotiate with the owner to sell the lot to the government since it has been declared a socialized housing site in 2001 yet.

“Kulang ra siguro ni sa negotiation with the owner. We will try our best to negotiate with the owner, but of course dili ta makabuot sa presyo,” Daluz said.

Daluz said that there should have been an expropriation case filed right after Ordinance 1868 was passed, but unfortunately the ordinance was not implemented immediately.

In 1980, an ejectment case was filed against the families occupying the lot. There were originally 11 houses involved and the number of families ballooned to 72 because of their extended families.

The residents have a pending petition for the annulment of decision, judgment or order filed before the Regional Trial Court.

They filed the petition for nullification a week ago. Their legal counsel, Glen Villariza, said they want the judgment of the Municipal Trial Court in Cities Branch 3 against the residents nullified because they discovered that the petitioners in the ejectment case are no longer the owners of the lot.

Villariza said they found out just over a week ago that the property’s name was already transferred to Vice Mayor Young and his siblings namely, James Young Jr., Sally Young, Jeffrey Young, Jason Young, Stephanie Young, Jeremy Young, Jonathan Young including spouses Silas Omandam and Linda Omandam.

The respondents in the petition for nullification are the original owners Eladio Diores and the spouses James and Salud Young.

Diores was the previous owner before the Youngs acquired the property.

“In the case pending before the Municipal Trial Court in Cities Branch 3, Cebu City docketed as Civil Case No. R-22298 for Unlawful Detainer, the respondents are no longer the owners of the properties presently occupied by the petitioners; thus, they lost their rights and interest to the case… Having lost ownership of the property presently occupied by the petitioners, the respondents have lost their standing in court,” the petition reads.

Villariza said that any judgment, decision, resolution or orders cannot be executed for a party who is not a real party in interest. He said so far, there was no substitution of parties registered in the case.

Gaudiosa Viuda de Telebangco said the Young’s are the third owner of the property. Before the Young family bought the property, they already had an agreement with the second owner, Corazon Ceniza, that they will redeem the property.

She said the negotiation seemed smooth with Ceniza, but she did not exactly know why the deal was suddenly put off until they were informed that the property already has a new owner.

—(FREEMAN)