Palace: Petition vs closure of state-owned Boracay has no merit

MANILA, Philippines — Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque has asserted that a petition before the Supreme Court against the impending Boracay closure has “no merit.”

Roque, in a statement, said that while President Rodrigo Duterte respects the SC, the Palace sees “absolutely no merit for any private party to restraint [sic] the closure of Boracay to tourists.”

This, according to Roque, is due to an earlier SC ruling that deemed that Boracay is “owned primarily by the state.”

A 2008 decision of the Supreme Court classified the island as both forest and agricultural land that belongs wholly to the government. The high tribunal said that resort owners of the island are merely “builders in good faith.”

The high tribunal also said: “The continued possession and considerable investment of private claimants do not automatically give them a vested right in Boracay. Nor do these give them a right to apply for a title to the land they are presently occupying.”

READ: Boracay wholly state-owned—2008 Supreme Court ruling

A The STAR report citing an unnamed source said that since the 2008 decision was not repealed or reconsidered, the ruling that Boracay is state-owned stands. “Giving property ownership to casino resorts in areas covered by forest land under the law may be questioned based on this decision,” explained the source, who requested anonymity.

Roque added: “In any case, the closure is because of the inherent police power of the state to protect the environment in Boracay.”

Sans SC-issued halt order, Boracay closure to push through

Two island workers and a tourist, through the National Union of People’s Lawyers, sought the SC to ask for a halt order on Duterte’s verbal order of closure. They also sought to challenge the constitutionality of the Boracay shutdown.

But Roque said that unless the tribunal grants the petitioners’ immediate relief for a temporary restraining order, “the planned closure of Boracay to tourists shall proceed.”

“We see no reason how private persons can allege and prove irreparable injuries, a prerequisite for TRO, given that their stay in the island is by mere tolerance of the State,” the palace spokesman added.

The petitioners said that said that Duterte’s order infringes upon their right to travel and due process.

READ: Supreme Court asked to stop Boracay shutdown

They said that the shutdown order is a “sweeping governmental measure that curtails the rights of persons who have not been found guilty of such violations.”

They noted that the barring tourists and non-residents from travelling to Boracay will divest island workers and prevent non-residents form earning their income.

“All told, the impending closure on April 26, 2018 is a glaringly disproportionate response in relation to the objectives sought to be attained,” the petitioners added.