Baguio folk facing eviction seek protection as DND recovers military lands

OLD HOME Camp Henry T. Allen is one of the oldest military reservations in Baguio City, having been proclaimed in the 1920s. Now inhabited by a community, some members of whom were relatives or descendants of retired soldiers, this camp used to be home to the Philippine Military Academy. —NEIL CLARK ONGCHANGCO

BAGUIO CITY—Families living within military reservations in the summer capital may have to continue to face eviction notices issued by the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) until the Department of National Defense (DND) addresses the appeal of city officials to segregate these areas and other military properties from PMA.

The DND has directed PMA to recover and clear all inhabited lands within the 14.3-hectare Camp Henry T. Allen near City Hall, which was formerly home to the premier military school; the subdivision in the 29-ha Navy Base; and the communities surrounding the 373-ha Fort Gregorio del Pilar, where PMA now stands, as confirmed by Defense Undersecretary Irineo Espino during a dialogue last week with Mayor Benjamin Magalong and affected residents.

PMA, as the custodian of the city’s military lands, has been issuing eviction notices to households in these areas as early as 2023, in line with a nationwide military asset recovery program. The DND has not disclosed how it plans to use the recovered properties in Baguio.

Magalong, a member of PMA “Sandigan” Class of 1982, has appealed to the DND to halt the evictions while the city’s petition to segregate occupied military lands from the reservations is under consideration.

Residents at the meeting on April 14 also urged the DND to recognize Ibaloy land rights within military property and to segregate ancestral lands.

Other options

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro initially struck down segregation as a solution but has since instructed the DND and PMA to explore alternative legal options that could spare long-standing settlements from the DND’s recovery efforts, according to Espino.

Officials said one option could involve the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) seeking a proclamation from President Marcos to allow segregation.

Army Lt. Col. Julesther Cañada, PMA’s real estate officer, said the academy has issued 30-day eviction notices as part of due process. These notices are a precursor to filing civil lawsuits aimed at recovering the properties.

He added the courts should “decide once and for all” who has jurisdiction over the military lands in Baguio, potentially ending the PMA’s decadeslong standoff with barangays at Camp Allen (home to 2,330 people as of the 2020 census) and Navy Base (part of Barangay St. Joseph with 3,951 residents). Some of the inhabitants are descendants or relatives of retired soldiers who settled in the city.

Objections

Four other barangays in Loakan have objected to PMA-ordered evictions in areas overlapping with military property.

Councilor Isabelo Cosalan Jr., an Ibaloy, informed Espino of a recent city council resolution requesting the DENR to suspend the issuance of special land patents that PMA has applied for in order to secure its landholdings.

Citing “humanitarian” concerns, Espino said he planned to ask Teodoro to ease restrictions on residents living on military lands by allowing city utilities to provide water and electricity and by permitting quick home repairs following storms or other calamities.

However, residents may be asked to sign waivers agreeing to voluntarily vacate the premises should the courts rule in favor of PMA’s claims over Baguio’s military lands, said Espino, who served as PMA superintendent in 2012 and is a member of PMA Class “Matapat” of 1979.