Watery lot. Mothballed, the City of Naga wants to buy from the Capitol the controversial Balili lot in barangay Tinaan. (CDN FILE PHOTO)
The City of Naga has expressed their interest in acquiring the controversial 24.7-hectare Balili property from the Cebu provincial government.
City of Naga Mayor Valdemor Chiong made the statement shortly after Gov. Hilario Davide III announced during his State of the Province Address that the beach property in barangay Tina-an will no longer be used as a coal ash dump.
Chiong, however, did not say what the city government plans to do with the property should it succeed in its acquisition bid. He said he has already told the governor of their intention.
If the property is declared as a foreshore area, the city should own it, he said.
“I told the governor that we are willing to pay for the property. If the foreshore lease is awarded, then supposedly, it should be owned by the government. Naga should own that,” said the mayor.
Earlier, Chiong said a number of investors have inquired about the property.
However, Davide maintained his stand that no developments can be made on the property since it is still subject to a Sandiganbayan case against former Cebu governor and now 3rd District Rep. Gwendolyn Garcia and seven other officials.
All the transactions involving the property such as payment to the contractor for its backfilling and a previous deal with Kepco-SPC to utilize it as a dumpsite for coal ash residue were not granted by Davide.
Last July, the Court of Appeals (CA) cleared Garcia of administrative charges relating to the land purchase after it nullified the previous decision of the anti-graft office.
However, she still faces criminal cases before the Sandiganbayan for buying the property, which turned out to be mostly underwater.
Chiong said he can only hope for a speedy resolution of the cases.
“I just hope that the cases get resolved in court immediately because we don’t want the property to go to waste,” he said.
Meanwhile, Cebu 6th district Rep. Luigi Quisumbing lauded Davide’s accomplishments after one year in the Capitol.
“I congratulate Governor Davide on the gains he has made in his first year… I look forward to the sustained momentum we have and will continue to enjoy under the P-Noy administration,” Quisumbing said in a press statement./with reports from Chief of Reporters Doris C. Bongcac