ANGELES CITY – Off-roaders’ groups and 4×4 clubs now have a reason to rejoice after being barred from using a section of a road in Barangay Sapangbato here as a shortcut to and from, what locals in the area described as, the “Gate of Heaven.”
Off-roaders using 4×4 vehicles try out their skills in navigating the rough terrain on the lahar-laden Sacobia and Porac riverbeds after passing through the so called Gate of Heaven which is a scenic mountain canyon carved out by the wind and Mother Nature within the vicinity of Puning Hot Spring Resort and Restaurant.
The city council has approved on March 17 a unanimous resolution condemning the February 13 incident at the said resort in Barangay Sapangbato and has urged its management not to prevent any Filipinos or foreigners from using the contested section of the barangay road.
Sangguniang Panglunsod (SP) Resolution No. 7391 said Puning “has no authority to prevent law abiding and tax paying Filipinos from using the barangay road in Sitio Target going to the scenic trails around the area.”
The SP resolution was sponsored by Councilors Maximo L. Sangil, Jericho G. Aguas, Carmelo G. Lazatin Jr., Bryan Matthew C. Nepomuceno, and Amos B. Rivera.
It was seconded by Councilors Danica A. Lacson, Alexander P. Indiongco. Arvin M. Suller, Maricel G. Morales, Edgardo D. Pamintuan Jr., and Carlito M. Ganzon. It was signed by Vice Mayor Vicky Vega-Cabigting as Presiding Officer. The SP resolution rebuked the observation of John Montances, deputy chief of the Angeles City Tourism Office (ACTO), that Puning is inside the Porac Aeta Ancestral Domain (PAAD) and the city has no jurisdiction over it.
It can be recalled that during the SP regular session at the Legislative Building at the City Hall Compound here last month, Montances cited provisions of the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act (IPRA) and explained that the city has no power to regulate it.
But the city council said otherwise declaring that Puning has no right or authority to select and prevent persons that can access the barangay road in Sitio Target at the said barangay.
The city council’s collective declaration was contained in its resolution approved on March 17.
