Resort owners buck plan to declare Boracay as alienable & disposable

BORACAY, Aklan – Resort owners of the country’s premiere tourist destination are opposing the plan of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to declare the island as alienable and disposable (A & D).

"DENR has been consistently saying that Boracay is a government property, a claim that we vehemently oppose. We sued the DENR for this and already won in the Regional Trial Court and in the Court of Appeals when DENR appealed. The courts recognized our vested rights that we have as owners of land in Boracay. Despite losing twice, DENR does not want to honor the decision of the court and submitted another motion for reconsideration," said Dr. Orlando Sacay, vice-president of the Boracay Foundation Inc. and owner of the first-rate Waling-Waling Hotel.

At the same time, DENR Secretary Michael Defensor is reportedly bent on issuing an administrative order that classifies land on the island and plans to open up re-categorized alienable and disposable lands for public bidding.

This would make Boracay’s more than 500 hectares of land as A & D. The area is 56.13 percent of the 1,032-hectare island-resort. Also, 259.6 hectares or 25.155 percent of the island, will be declared as forest land to be used for plantations and fishponds. A smaller area, 118.6 hectares (or 11.49 percent of the island) will be categorized as protected areas. These will cover parks, buffer zones, and a conservation area for the endangered bat species on the island.

"Many of us have been doing business here for a long time, we have been paying taxes and many have already acquired titles to their lands, while others have tax declarations. Now, if the lands are classified as A & D, we will be required to bid for our own lands that we have already developed. That is something that we can never agree on because we have established our rights as owners. So why should we be made to bid at market value for lands that we own anyway?" Sacay said.

Most resort and hotel establishments already appealed to President Arroyo to intervene and resolve the issue in their favor.

President Arroyo has appointed three eminent persons to look into the issue and to establish a sustainable development plan for Boracay. These are Inigo Zobel, who reportedly owns a large property in the island, the Elizalde and Coscuella Groups.

"We met with the President last January and we have talked to Secretary Defensor about this issue. The President appreciates our problem, she is sympathetic to our plight and we are hoping that we could come to an acceptable compromise," said Sacay.

Sacay insisted that their rights as owners are protected under Proclamation 1801 issued by the late President Ferdinand Marcos on Nov. 10, 1978 that declared Boracay and other islands and coves as tourist and marine zones.

"There is no need to declare Boracay as an alienable and disposable land. It is a private land because it is a tourism zone, it is neither a forest reserve, and it’s not agricultural," noted Sacay.

Resort owners have also sought a declaratory relief from the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Kalibo, Aklan since the DENR refused to allow them to file for judicial confirmation of title or free patent.

Both the RTC and the Court of Appeals ruled that the PD 1801 does not bar land claimants from having their lots surveyed to apply for titles. The case is still pending at the appellate court under appeal by the government.

"In this case, titling is only one of the issues, the courts have already favored us and we have even allowed the DENR to conduct land surveys, what we want is for government to recognize our ownership rights," said Sacay.

DENR is claiming that declaring Boracay as A & D land will resolve ownership disputes on disputed properties, particularly premiere spots.

Land prizes in Boracay are escalating, in anticipation of increased tourist arrivals with real estate prizes in the world-renowned five-kilometer white beach ranging from P25,000 to P30,000 per square meter.

Top national and local government officials will be visiting Boracay this month for the groundbreaking ceremonies for the construction of a 200-room world-class hotel by the Shangri-la international chain of hotels.