Compania Maritima: City applies for land title

CEBU, Philippines - Beyond claiming Compania Maritima as its property, the Cebu City government has applied for a land title at the Land Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-7.

This as the Cebu Ports Authority also asked for a temporary restraining order from the court to stop the city government from using the property and the 4.2-hectare lot the building is currently standing at.

The city applied for the land title after the City Council prepared for the necessary documents such as the survey plan and historical data, among others.

LMC head lawyer Jade Ponce said that the lot is an unregistered public land; therefore, anybody can apply for a title.

He said the city will fight for the property with their aim to restore the century-old building into an art or maritime museum before the year ends.

Mayor Michael Rama, in a teleconference yesterday, reiterated his desire to convert Compañia Maritima into a public heritage.

The plan is to restore the building and put up a mosaic of historical areas in Cebu on its windows, and other art works, depending on the occasion.

Ponce said the case earlier filed by CPA for quieting of title against the city is dismissible since the property has not been titled yet.

“Quieting of title needs one big property, it’s the land title. But the plaintiff has not shown the title of the property yet,” he said, adding that the area is no longer suitable for port operations.

CPA, represented by the Office of the Solicitor General, has asked Regional Trial Court Branch 10 Judge Soliver Peras to issue a TRO or a writ of preliminary injunction against the city government pending resolution of its petition for injunction with quieting of title.

Solicitor General Florin Hilbay argued that the Philippine government, through the CPA, has clear rights over the property being the administrator and beneficial user.

The city government asked for the dismissal of the case for lack of merit.

Lawyers Jerone Castillo and Floro Casa, Jr. alleged that the injunction with quieting of title filed by the CPA was not properly verified in accordance with Section 4, Rule 7 of the Rules of Civil Procedure.

Hilbay, however, said such authority from the Congress need not be attached to or included in the verification. — May B. Miasco/NSA (FREEMAN)