THE Task Force on Housing and Urban Poor Settlement of Dagupan City headed by City Engineer Virginia Rosario, expressing concern at sly moves By squatters along the Bonua shoreline, met last Friday to plot moves against the defiant squatters

The task force was created by Mayor Alipio Fernandez Jr. to investigate and stop all squatting activities on public lands in the city.

Fernandez issued an executive order canceling all the TDCs issued by the City Assessors Office in a move to stop the squatting.

Most of the squatters are well-off families who secured tax declarations over parcels of land along the seashore based on the certificate of alienability and disposability issued by the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office.

Before the cancellation was effected however the squatters moved in the beachfront to construct their structures, according to City Planning and Development Coordinator Romeo Rosario, task force spokesman.

Rosario revealed that these structures were built only since November or December last year, in an apparent rush to beat the mayor’s Executive Order No. 66 dated December 4, 2007.

“We have no other options but to demolish the illegal structures,” said Rosario, adding the squatting in the foreshoreland of Dagupan has reached an intolerable point.

Rosario said the owners of the illegal structures put these up make it appear that they have introduced improvements on the land for which they were applying for permanent titles to satisfy certain requirements provided by law in the titling of public lands.

“Obviously, there were structures that the owners must have built when they saw the city officials were busy during the period leading to preparations for the fiesta in December,” he said.

Unfortunately, not even one TDC has been cancelled to date as the city assessor’s office has verified only five of the supposed holders of the document so far.

Executive Order No. 66 issued by the mayor ordered the cancellation of all existing TDCs along the foreshore land of Bonuan adjacent to the Tondaligan Park established under Proclamation No.98 issued by then President Diosdado Macapagal.

TDCs are not proofs of land titles but merely of payment of taxes but which can be used as evidence by the holders in eventually securing permanent titles later on from the DENR or the court.

“I don’t know what the intentions of these people are but definitely, this is a clear violation of law and needs to be addressed,” Rosario said, referring to the maneuvers of the TDC holders.