Laarni’s dad figures in land controversy

Grave owners of a portion of Eternal Gardens Memorial Park will finally be able to visit the resting places of their departed love ones – but only until All Soul’s Day.

This after a Caloocan City Regional Trial Court (RTC) issued out an order allowing them to visit the graves of their deceased relatives for five days starting this morning.

Judge Luisito Sardillo, however, noted that the order is only for "humanitarian reasons" in view of the coming holiday, since a portion of Eternal Gardens is now a private lot.

The owner, Alfonso Enriquez, father of former actress Laarni Enriquez, is asking P12 million from the memorial park owners to buy back the lots he acquired from previous owner Leila Sevilla. Laarni Enriquez is one of the mistresses of President Estrada.

Enriquez recently built fences and hired armed guards to block the dominantly Chinese grave owners from entering the now privatized lots.

The grave owners, who bought the burial lots from Eternal Gardens Corporation, have already asked President Estrada for help – claiming that Enriquez harassed them to "assert his baseless claim on this portion of the park."

But according to Enriquez’s lawyers, Napoleon Galit and Alejandro Fajardo, it was an act of compassion on the part of Enriquez to allow the grave owners to mourn their loved ones until Nov. 2.

In an interview, Fajardo said the burial lot owners were duped by Eternal Gardens since the memorial park does not have the right to sell them the property.

"The Supreme Court’s decision on Aug. 5, 1998 nullifies Eternal Gardens as owners of a portion of the memorial park. But up to the present, they keep selling properties to buyers. And any sales they make are considered void," Fajardo said.

The decision ruled in favor of Lilia Sevilla, and said she is the rightful owner of that portion of the park, which has measurement of about 1.35 hectares.

Enriquez later signed a memorandum of agreement with Sevilla, and insisted he was now co-owner of the said lots. But Sevilla dismissed the claim, saying the MOA has been revoked.

The grave owners meanwhile, expressed delight in the court’s decision, but said that they will continue to fight Enriquez in court because "those lots have been fully paid for."