Cebu City owns Fuente Osmeña

The Fuente Osmeña Circle, one of the famous landmarks of Cebu City, belongs to the Cebu City government, not the province of Cebu, as affirmed by a court decision. (CDN FILE PHOTO)

THE Cebu City government is the true owner Fuente Osmeña Circle and not the Cebu province.

The Court upheld Cebu City government’s ownership of the park in its decision of the civil case filed by the provincial government in 2007 for Quieting of Title and Recovery of Possession.

“Premises considered judgment is hereby rendered in favor of the defendants (Cebu City Government) and against the plaintiff (Cebu Provincial Government) by dismissing the above captioned case and upholding the right of ownership and possession by the City of Cebu on Fuente Osmeña Circle,” read the decision of Regional Trial Court Branch 23 Presiding Judge Generosa Labra.

Construction

Labra, in her decision, said the Fuente Osmeña park was constructed within the territorial boundaries of the municipality of Cebu in 1910 and finished in 1912. Under the laws existing at that time, the province had no authority to own parks of municipalities.

Certificates of Title

On the issue of the Certificates of Title presented by the province of Cebu as proof of ownership of the Fuente Osmeña Circle, the province admitted that their Certificates of Title were issued without any Decree of Registration by the Land Registration Commission.

The lack of a decree of registration makes the Certificates of Title flawed and defective because there would be no basis for the issuance of the Certificates of Title, the court said, citing the testimony of a witness from the Land Registration Authority, Rubynita Caguioa.

Lawyer Lyndon Basan of the Cebu City Legal Office said Fuente Osmena Circle was established on 1912, but the title of the province of Cebu for the area was constituted a year after the Fuente was finished.

“Before issuance of the title naa nay Fuente Osmena Circle murag ni predate siya ba. The point ani nag-una ug construct ang Fuente before sa title. Usa sad sa atong question, the title does not have any decree of registration,” Basan said.

Estoppel by laches

The Court also ruled that the province of Cebu was barred by estoppel by latches from claiming the property.

Citing jurisprudence, the Court said the province of Cebu slept on its right to claim the property for 95 years. Nothing could be more plain than the adverse possession by the Cebu City government of the Fuente Osmeña Circle, yet it took the province 95 years before asserting its claim over the property.

While as a rule laches does not lie against the government, the Supreme Court in an earlier ruling stated that immunity of the government from laches and estoppels is not absolute, the decision citing a Supreme Court ruling said.

Provincial Legal Officer Orvi Ortega said he hasn’t read the decision.

“We will look into it and study possible actions the province may take,” he said.

He added that they can always file a Motion for Reconsideration if they disagree on the decision of the court. And if their motion is denied, they could still file an appeal with the Court of Appeals.

The province of Cebu during the term of Gwendolyn Garcia in 2007, filed a claim of ownership of the 1,100 square meter park.