BAGUIO CITY June 08 – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan ordered the City General Services Office and the City Legal Office to work out the filing of appropriate charges against the operator of the city-owned Asin hot springs after he allegedly dismantled the gate and removed the notices around the fence informing the public of his eviction from the property.
The local chief executive said aside from the filing of contempt of court charges against Roger Sinot, criminal charges of malicious mischief will also be filed against him for allegedly forcibly removing the temporary gate installed by the GSO in the premises and the said notices installed around the gate.
Assistant General Services Officer Eugene Buyucan reported during Monday’s regular department heads meeting that they already served the eviction notice against Sinot for the latter to vacate the premises of the Asin hot springs pursuant to a court order and immediately installed a temporary gate within the swimming pool area apart from installing notices informing the public that Sinot is no longer the operator of the city-owned resort.
However, Sinot, together with some cohorts, allegedly dismantled the gate and removed the notices as well as posting in the social media a certification issued by the municipal assessor’s office of Tuba certifying among other things that the local government of Baguio has no property in the said area.
Domogan argued that the people of Tuba know for a fact that the Baguio City government owns the property which was purchased in 1935 from the Ramirez family but the property was not segregated from the title of the Ramirez family.
He also ordered the City Assessor’s Office to fastrack the segregation of the Ramirez property so that the appropriate tax declaration could be issued by the Tuba municipal assessor’s office in favor of the city so that Sinot will not continue to use this as alibi.
According to him, the city will secure its property within the jurisdiction of Tuba and he is wondering why Sinot insists on occupying the property when his eviction was already ordered by a local court.
Domogan expressed his disappointment over Sinot’s actions, saying that these deserve the appropriate counter actions from the local government to invoke its rights over the property that it purchased from the Ramirez family and that the legitimacy of its ownership was upheld by a Benguet court through a decision and subsequently ordered Sinot’s eviction from the property and ordering him to pay his supposed rentals through the years for the use of the property.** By Dexter A. See
