Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia| CDN Digital File Photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia has stood her ground by demanding just compensation from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for encroaching on government lots along Osmeña Blvd. in Cebu City.
Governor Garcia, in a press briefing on Friday, July 21, 2023, presented the response of the DPWH to the Capitol saying that the national agency would not pay the Capitol for its demand for just compensation for the use of a property along Osmeña Blvd.
READ: Capitol demands rental from telcos, utility companies encroaching in province-owned properties
DPWH: We will not pay province
The DPWH central office, in a letter signed by Undersecretary Anne Sharlyne Lapiz, maintained that DPWH would not pay the province any compensation.
The DPWH claimed that the disputed property was only held in trust for the state and that the province was a mere trustee for the national government–unless the province could prove that it acquired the property through its private capacity.
Governor Garcia: We will file complaint
This, however, did not sit well with Governor Garcia, who, with the Capitol lawyers, are planning to possibly submit a formal complaint to request compensation for the provincial-owned property.
Capitol lawyers maintained that the roads leading to the Capitol were bought by the provincial government from a private company, Cebu Heights Company, Inc., back in the 1930s.
READ: Gwen urges DPWH, contractor to settle dispute on UN Avenue
Cebu Province Properties not hand-me-downs
The Capitol also has titles that can prove that the properties were purchased by the province, said Lawyer Rory Jon Sepulveda, the Capitol’s legal consultant.
“These [properties] are not hand-me-downs,”said Sepulveda.
READ: 2,395 DPWH projects worth P96-B not efficiently implemented due to poor planning — COA
Governor Garcia: DPWH encroached on Province lot
Garcia said that although the Osmeña Blvd. property title had an annotation of road lots, it only corresponded to 20 meters in width.
“Upon inspection by our engineers, it was proven that the DPWH had extended beyond the 20-meter limit. Two meters on each side, therefore encroaching a total of four meters width and up to Fuente Osmeña,” Garcia said.
The DPWH was previously found to have occupied a 42,615 square meter area of the Capitol lot along Osmeña Boulevard.
READ: COA flags P60-B delayed projects of DPWH
Utilities willing to pay
The provincial government has had numerous discussions, not just with DPWH, but with other utilities on the province’s demand for just compensation for using provincial government-owned properties.
Garcia said other utilities had already indicated their willingness to pay, including private building owners whose buildings had also encroached upon Cebu Provincial government property.
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