Lowland jitters– highland grab

A number of people are experiencing Lowland Jitters because of the ongoing subway project for Metro Manila, specifically those residing in skyscrapers and condominiums located near the path of the subway project.

Many of them don’t know how far or near they are from all the tunneling and if they are safe. Even homeowners are worried because of the lack of information, as expressed by Ms. Rita who wrote us recently.

“I would like to share with you about the ongoing Metro Manila Subway Project. This project is needed and laudable for all of us who suffer lack of better transport system. However, there are issues not being addressed concerning the areas that would be affected by it.

“We live in Corinthian Gardens. There will be more or less 40 houses that will be affected by this project. We are not against the project but it is the issue of the depth of excavation that will be done. At the start of said project we were told that the excavation will be 50 meters in depth.

“Fast forward, we have been informed that it will be 11 meters deep from where our houses stand. The IRR approved the 50 meters depth at the start but we learned that they are trying to amend it to 11 meters.

“We are facing a blank wall on how to deal with this issue. Our hands are tied not knowing what agency or whom to approach on this matter.”

Just like Ms. Rita, we in Barrio Kapitolyo have no idea about the route and current status of the project and there are concerns how all the tunneling will affect the foundations of buildings, homes and parking lots along the subway path.

A number of commercial parking lots in the area go as deep as five stories which is beyond the 11 meters being mentioned. In the event of an earthquake of 5 to 7 magnitude, what would the potential outcomes be? Perhaps it’s time for the Senate and members of Congress to inquire for their constituents.

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After 25 long years, the City of Baguio was about to take back ownership of Camp John Hay which has been part of the city charter since 1907. But city officials and local leaders are about to scream: “We wuz robbed!”

When the contract between the Bases Conversion and Development Authority and CJHDevco was rescinded, Baguio City officials assumed that they can now request or demand that John Hay be returned to Baguio City as part of an agreement 25 years ago.

Lo and behold, there is now a pending bill before President Bongbong Marcos that removes Camp John Hay from Baguio City and opens the gates for outright sale of properties in John Hay to private individuals or turn it into the next “BGC” or Mountain Resort and Casino Capital of the Philippines.

House Bill 7406 was introduced by Baguio Congressman Mark Go, with Reps. Christopherson Yap and Florita Robes as co-authors, entitled “The Revised Charter of the City of Baguio.” The bill proposes to redefine the territory of the original Baguio Townsite Reservation of 1907.

The idea is to fix technical descriptions of the city, its barangays so that land related documentation and inter barangay disputes can be settled. Interestingly, a special mention in the bill is the exclusion or removal of Camp John Hay from Baguio City.

This is quite puzzling since the Baguio Charter was established in 1907. The three-way agreements between Baguio City, BCDA and CJHDevCo directly and indirectly recognize or abide by the “19 conditionalities” where fees/dues would be paid to the city as their share in the project and eventual return of the reservation when the lease expired.

Unless PBBM vetoes the bill, it will lapse into law by April 14, 2025. If that happens, the City of Baguio will be deprived of the right to exercise ownership and management of Camp John Hay. But that’s not all.

In section 52, 2nd paragraph as well as Senate committee report 347, it mentions the creation of a “Special Committee on Lands shall be composed of the City Mayor as chairman, the representative from the DENR, the City Vice Mayor, the chairperson of the City Committee on Urban Planning, Lands and Housing, the representative of the National Commission on Indigenous People, representative of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the representative from the John Hay Management Corporation (JHMC)/BCDA insofar as lands within the Camp John Hay Reservation are concerned, as members.”

That committee essentially acts as the Board of Directors for the use, sale or disposition of land inside Camp John Hay. Alongside this pending bill, a bidding for a new master plan for Camp John Hay is being bid out.

The new master plan allegedly incorporates the outright sale of lots, whether for residential or commercial use. Presumably the direction is to sell off land at premium prices, instead of dealing with tenants, developers and court cases.

Log cabin and single detached unit owners claim that they have been encouraged to lease areas surrounding their homes because they can “buy them in the near future.”

The plot thickens when you put together the rescinding of the contract of BCDA-CJHDevCo, the eviction of investors and tenants, the proposed revised charter of Baguio City and the hotly contested race for mayor of Baguio City, where Congressman Mark Go is now running for mayor against incumbent Mayor Benjie Magalong.

The Summer Capital of the Philippines may soon become Baguio Global City or Baguio Gaming Capital of the world.