Labella to appeal to court for a 6-month delay in demolition of soldiers’ homes in Barangay Apas

The houses on Lot 937, a government lot provided for the families of soldiers assigned in Camp Lapu-lapu, the headquarters of the AFP Central Command (Centcom),  is being threatened with demolition over an ownership dispute. | CDND Photo/ Delta Dyrecka Letigio

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella said the Cebu City government will intervene in the case involving the demolition of the 168 houses of soldiers on Lot 937 in Barangay Apas through a court pleading that will seek to  postpone the demolition for six months.

Labella told reporters on Wednesday, October 9, 2019, said that even if the court has issued a demolition order, Republic Act 7279 or the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992, which states that no demolition can occur in residential lots if no proper relocation has been given to the residents, must be followed.

“I have written to the court to postpone the demolition for just six months so we can find a proper relocation for the displaced families,” said the mayor.

He said he already asked the help of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) to intervene in case a demolition will be enforced before the court responds to the city’s appeal.

The mayor said he believed that Police Colonel Gemma Vinluan, the CCPO chief,  will be able to keep the peace as tensions rises in the area following the demolition threats.

“We will now have to wait for the court’s decision,” said the mayor.

The Cebu City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 9 ordered last June the demolition of residences on Lot 937, which houses the families of retired soldiers,  located at the back of Camp Lapu-Lapu, the headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Central Command (Centcom).

However, the  demolitions have not been carried out following protests from the residents, represented by the Archangels Residence Mergence Inc. (Armi).

READ: Soldiers’ kin: Give us due process before you evict us

The Armi members earlier refused to have their houses demolished since they have been occupying the area since the 1960s, were not given due process, and that their case was allegedly a manifestation of “land-grabbing.”

They filed a petition for annulment of judgment to the Court of Appeals for the 2001 decision of the lower court declaring a certain Mariano Godinez as owner of the property after Centcom failed to present the voucher showing the payment that the AFP made for the land in 1939.

The Solicitor General, the office that represents the country in court, has also filed a contention on court to assert its claim that Lot 937 is the property of the Republic of the Philippines, which was purchased to house the country’s soldiers serving in Centcom (formerly the Visayas Command or Viscom) and their families.

Read more: Solicitor General, Cebu City gov’t back Lot 937 residents’ claims

However, 70 of the 200 families residing in the lot have already agreed to let go of their homes as they availed of the conditional contract of sale for Lots 11 and 12 from the Cebu Provincial Government.

READ: PB to tackle conditional sale of lots in disputed Lot 937 in Apas

Armi said these 70 families are not part of their organization and no longer represents the interests of the residents of Lot 937. /elb