Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan
CAPAS, Tarlac – “These are government lands we are mandated to protect.”
Thus, said Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan of tracts of land he was “maliciously accused” of as having grabbed in social media posts.
In a press conference on Monday at the municipal hall here, Catacutan denied the charges hurled against him by one Pyra Lucas in her Facebook account, “Pyra Lucas in Action,” that he is into land grabbing to the detriment of his poor and marginalized constituents.
Lucas is from the neighboring Mabalacat City who earned the ire of its officials for her alleged allegations of corruption against them without any basis and was promptly slapped with 58 counts of libel and declared persona non grata. Ironically, Lucas was ousted as a member of the Victims Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) for alleged corruption.
Mayor Catacutan said Lucas recently came out with four videos in her FB account including one showing father and son Froilan and Isagani Apostol and one Mr. Estabillo accusing him of land grabbing and harassment involving a lot at the O’Donnell Resettlement area and agro-industrial area (AITA) that was granted to the municipality.
Catacutan said the lots are all covered by the approved plan of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. The land being claimed by Froilan Apostol, which is 10 hectares, was appropriated for a senior high school building, a Department of Education–Province of Tarlac building and the future DepEd City Division of Capas building when the municipality becomes a city.
The third lot will be the site of the TESDA building and an extension of the barangay cemetery, while the rest will be for the terminal of tricycles and wet market and an open space, Catacutan said.
“This is the property that they are saying I am land grabbing, but as mayor, I have to protect the approved plan as part of my mandate,” asserted Catacutan.
“The senior high school, the TESDA and DepEd have already broken ground and now they (complainants) are preventing future construction. What they did was evidenced by the notice of illegal construction sent by the building officials and they already sold out three parcels of land which are encroaching on the land of other farmers in the area and the DepEd,” Catacutan pointed out.
The mayor also said “Resaida Apostol who is a retired teacher and niece of Froilan Apostol said she cannot till her land because she is being harassed by the family of her uncle.”
Another video showed Estabillo who is only entitled to one hectare but he is claiming four hectares owned by the farmers identified as Soliven, Aquino and the land where he is claiming will be the one that will be used by TESDA, the mayor said.
“We have to assist other farmers and the TESDA as evidenced by Presidential Proclamation 813. They are invoking EO 75 signed by President Duterte but this does not apply here because it is already an approved plan by the DENR for government centers – senior high school, TESDA, DepEd, MRF, municipal hatchery,etc,” he said.
Libel
Catacutan said “when someone makes a comment in the FB account Pyra Lucas in Action not favorable to them, they delete it and block it.”
Catacutan said he filed at least three libel cases on Mach 4, against Apostol, Estabillo and Lucas. Hearings are set on March 23 and 30.
Hot spring
The third video is the alleged land grabbing at the AITA in Barangay Bueno. The mayor said the hot spring or “danum mapali” in the vernacular is known to cure skin diseases and rheumatism and is frequented by people since time immemorial.
He said a certain Aeta by the name of Magdalena Lundang Mercado built a gate in the area and started collecting P20 from visitors going to the hot spring.
He said he called the police to prevent Mercado from collecting fees in the area as she had no legal basis to do so.
The hot spring is titled under the Province of Tarlac which 1.8 hectares issued in May, 2004 under then president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
“They invoked EO 75. But the DAR had already asserted that Proclamation 813 is not covered by EO 75,” Catacutan added.
“We just prevented the illegal fee collection, and they accused me already of land grabbing a property of the provincial government,” Catacutan said, adding that the barangay captain of the place himself testified they only stopped the illegal collection.
Another video in Lucas FB page showed Yolanda MiIlares, a former overseas Filipino worker. Catacutan said Millares went home from abroad after encountering problems in her place of work. The alleged land grabbing focused on the Castro Estate.
Catacutan said the approved module in 2014 showed that the land was sold to one Ramon Dizon for P500,000 and the sale was consummated at the Sta. Lucia Barangay Hall certified by barangay chairman Victorino Escoto. The deed of sale bore the names and signatures of spouses Rolando and Erlinda Millares, Yolanda’s parents, as the sellers and Ramon and Bonifacia Dizon as buyers.
“We even offered Yolanda our help in doing a perimeter survey to determine if her claim still had any basis,” the mayor said.
Quarrying
Another plot of land alleged to have been grabbed wassaid to have been quarried too.
But there is no quarrying in the area, said Catacutan: “Puno po ng calamansi at talong (eggplants) there is no quarrying. As also evidence by the certification of teachers.” Catacutan showed photos of the area planted to crops.
The mayor said it will be best for Lucas and the others to go the Provincial Government of Tarlac because they own the property.
As for Estabillo, Catacutan said Lucas and the others should consider giving the land of Mr. Soliven and Mr. Aquino and allow TESDA to build its building so that many Capasenos will stand to benefit.
As for Mrs. Millares, Catacutan said if she thinks that the land that was sold by her parents to Ramon Dizon is not binding and legal and the evidenced being presented by DAR is not enough, then she should take her case to the DAR or in court.
“Otherwise, let us stop this because this is no longer good for the interest of Capas,” Catacutan said.
