A mistake future mayors must avoid

There are very costly errors committed by the administration of His Honor, Cebu City Mayor Tomas R. Osmeña which future city hall administrators must keep in mind, if only to prevent history from repeating itself. One of which is the Ortega transaction in Barangay Hipodromo. Apart from its being an expensive mistake, it is a symbol of humongous stupidity made for the sole motivation of political survival. But, of course, city hall propagandists, at that time, had a different way of presenting the issue as to cover the odious objective.

As a backgrounder, the Ortega property in Barangay Hipodromo was occupied by hundreds of “informal settlers” (euphemism for the more inhuman term “squatters”). The Ortega family wanted to use their land in the way they deemed fit. It was unquestionably their legal right. But, it happened that such usage was in direct conflict with the interest of the informal settlers. It was most probable that the owners figured out a plan to deal with the burden imposed on them by an applicable law on urban squatters. Whatever it was, it meant that the occupants had to vacate the land and give way.

Another thing was in the mind of the occupants. They would not want to yield to the rightful owners. After all, they had been staying on the land since time immemorial. Many of their forebears lived and died there. Sans any certificate of title to prove ownership, the land was practically their birthright. Without having to shell out a centavo for either rent to the Ortegas or tax to the government, they could not just leave behind their welfare state and go somewhere.

Seeing their numbers to be a huge voting block, the city mayor knew where to place his political bet. The Ortegas, as a family of electors, could not hurt him politically while the squatters could. Lo and behold, he appeared like the proverbial protective angel promising to the occupants that they would not be evicted. Naturally, the settlers became the mayor’s captured votes.

To prop up the commitment of support to the urban poor settlers (against the landowners), the city government initiated eminent domain proceedings. In law, this means that private property will be taken for public use upon payment of just compensation. Cebu City, under Mayor Osmeña, wanted to take the land of the Ortegas under the legal ruse of on-site urban housing which meant that the lot would be subdivided and distributed to the actual occupants.

It was made to appear that the city mayor did not consider the fact that Barangay Hipodromo could hardly fall within the correct context of any site for the urban poor. His propaganda focused on his concern for the settlers. Cute. The strategic location of the Ortega property, being in a barangay adjacent to such a very valuable real estate called the Cebu Business Park of the Ayalas, would command a price per square meter that would be beyond the reach of the settlers. The mayor would have nothing to do with that.

 The mayor did not realize that the Ortegas were bent on getting back their land or its value. That was his monumental error. Thinking that the owners would seek compromise somewhere, he pursued the case. When the court ruled on the just compensation, the landowners had their last laugh.

The amount of compensation ordered by the court was fair to the Ortegas. But the settlers could not afford it because it was almost five times the value the latter could pay. Realizing his mistake, the mayor wanted to discontinue with the lot acquisition. After all, his original objective of getting the settlers’ votes was already reached. The city however, could no longer untangle the knot it created. It was stuck to the mayor’s wrong move.

I am not sure if the city had already paid Ortegas. That is not my point. Rather, it is my hope that future leaders must avoid repeating the mistake of Mayor Osmeña. In attending to this nagging problem of urban housing, officials must free themselves of selfish political motivation. Statesmanship is necessary. Winning an electoral contest must not be their primary consideration. Politics has to give way to correct planning.