The 50-Hectare Lie in the Iloilo Strait

On April 25, 2024, bureaucracy in Iloilo and the Philippines achieved a miracle of geography: it transformed water mangrove patches into farmland.

According to documents received by Daily Guardian, the Original Certificates of Title, based on three homestead patents granted on November 7, 1990, were issued on that date, covering 50 hectares – 500,000 square meters – of the Iloilo Strait. These are submerged mangrove forests along Barangays Balabago, Bito-on, and Hinactacan.

Clerical error, this is not. Rather, it is a calculated assault on the public domain and public safety that demands an immediate, aggressive response.

The most glaring question is one of basic optics. A homestead patent is a grant of public land to a citizen on the condition of actual residence and cultivation. To secure these titles (OCT Nos. 202400006, 202400008, and 202400007), government agents had to inspect the site and certify it as “alienable and disposable” agricultural land.

How does a surveyor stand in chest-deep saltwater, surrounded by centuries-old mangroves, and write “agricultural land” on a report?

This suggests either gross incompetence or criminal collusion. The accountability trail must go beyond vague agency blaming. We need the specific names of the personnel from the DENR and the City Assessor’s Office who signed the inspection reports and tax declarations. If a City Assessor certified a submerged mangrove patch as taxable agricultural land, that official is complicit in falsifying public documents. These signatories are not invisible; their names are on the paper. They must be summoned and asked to explain their “findings” under oath.

The impact of this anomaly is existential. These 50 hectares are not just real estate; they are the city’s first line of defense. These areas form part of the Iloilo Flood Control Project. Mangroves are a natural seawall, dissipating storm surges and absorbing the violence of typhoons like Tino.

Privatizing this belt gives the new “owners” the legal presumption to fence, fill, and develop the area. If this land is converted into subdivisions or commercial lots, the water that the mangroves once absorbed will have nowhere to go but into the homes of residents in Jaro and Lapuz. By issuing these titles, the state has effectively sold the safety of thousands of families for the private gain of a few claimants.

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of this exposé is the date. We are often accustomed to cleaning up land disputes from decades ago – legacy issues from a chaotic past. These titles were issued in April 2024, based on homestead patents that were said to have been granted in November 1990. How and why did it take more than 33 years to get a title?

This reveals that a brazen land-grabbing syndicate is currently active, operational, and embedded within our land bureaus. If 50 hectares of obvious coastline – visible to anyone with eyes – can be titled right under the nose of the local government this year, what else has been sold? This incident warrants a complete, citywide audit of all foreshore lease agreements and titling activities along the Iloilo Strait. We cannot assume this is an isolated case; we must assume it is a pilot test for further encroachment.

We cannot wait for a long, drawn-out investigation while the “owners” enforce rights-of-way or erect fences. The solution must be swift and bifurcated.

First, the City Government, in coordination with the DENR, must issue an immediate Cease and Desist Order (CDO) against any development or fencing activities in the subject areas. A moratorium is the bare minimum required to preserve the status quo.

Second, we must look to the long term. The Solicitor General and the DENR must immediately file Reversion Proceedings to cancel the titles and revert the land to the public domain. The Regalian Doctrine is clear: forest lands and water bodies are not subject to private ownership. These titles are void ab initio (from the start).

x

The DENR Regional Office VI has been quiet since the matter was referred to them in late November. Silence is no longer an option. The Iloilo Strait belongs to the people, and the people demand it back.