Land Grabbing Anomalies Attributed to Villar Companies

By On April 22, 2010 · 39 Comments · In 2010 Election Archive, Features
Editor’s Note: Part 1 of this series can be found HERE.

Concentric Rings, Part II: land-grabbing, land conversion and the untold human cost

Ang buhay sa tumpok

“Hindi talaga ako papayag. Magbubuwis talaga ako ng dugo. Ipaglalaban ko talaga ang lugar na ito.”

Pol had been a cheerful, voluble man, inordinately fond of teasing his wife and playing pranks on his three children. He had tried out all sorts of odd jobs in his time — from painting buildings to driving tricycles — but continued to struggle because of debilitating bouts of asthma. He and his wife Trining had always dreamed of owning their own home and living someplace idyllic away from the capital, which remained congested and polluted, as always, except in the most privileged enclaves.

The new neighbourhood was called Paradise Park Village — 7.2 hectares of barren lands situated in Barangay San Vicente in San Pedro, Laguna. As more settlers had streamed in from other provinces, the land tenants — who had originally planted root crops and banana trees, and occasionally tended cattle — eventually found work in an adjacent piggery farm. By 1984, the entire property had been bought by Maximino Argana, who, it later turned out, had been a Marcos crony.

Which explains why, in the heady aftermath of the EDSA revolution, the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) chose to sequester the entire area altogether. What is more difficult to understand is how — and on what grounds — Crown Asia (a Vista Land company, the 2/3 supermajority of which belongs to the family of Manny Villar) was able to acquire the properties in 2002, using a title under the name of a certain Jose Nuñez. From that point onwards, guards began to monitor the movements of the residents in a 2.18-hectare zone in particular (Lot 157), which housed around 205 families. Almost overnight, it would seem, a giant wall had been erected around this perimeter, preventing the tenants from repairing their homes or building new structures. In the blink of an eye, they had suddenly been denied access to roads, which then made access to electricity and running water all the more scarce and difficult.

Pol, Jr. — “Qurico” to his parents — had no way of knowing that this is what would become of his new home. Neither did Trining, who had left her secluded life as a yaya to work in a factory in San Pedro. The de los Santoses were, at any rate, resourceful and happy, and had finally begun to enjoy the rustic existence they shared in Paradise Park with their three children. As Trining would fondly say of her husband, “Mabait, matulungin, concerned masyado sa amin, at napaka-sipag. Bago uminom, magbibigay muna ng pera. Alas quatro ng umaga, nagbi-byahe na iyan, at nag-gagarahe lang kapag alas singko na ng hapon.”

Sadly, life in Paradise Park had eventually become almost entirely untenable. According to Trining, Crown Asia wanted their land for luxury developments and was not above harassing the tenants on a regular basis. “May problema talaga dito. Laging may gulo. Lagi siyang may katabi na itak. Baka daw kung gabi ay bigla nalang kaming i-harass. Pero ano naman ang magagawa ng itak? Baril ang hawak ng mga gwardiya nila. Nang magkagulo, itak lang ang dala niya. Sila ang unang nagpaputok, ang mga gwardiya.”
That day, 29 September 2002 — a Sunday, and therefore a day off for both parents — Pol had been excited. He had planned to buy a DVD player for their second child, who was to celebrate his birthday the following week. Trining had not wanted to buy the player because she knew they couldn’t afford it, but Pol had been insistent, saying: “malay mo, wala na ako bukas.”

Their youngest child had wanted to eat at Jollibee afterwards but, having bought the player, they had no more money, so they settled on a lunch of rice and coffee. “Pag-uwi namin, wala kaming ulam, wala na kaming pera. Bigas lang.”

But Pol didn’t mind: the only thing he wanted to do was play the DVD before a scheduled meeting with the Paradise Park Neighbourhood Association, where he was now the acting director. It was a regular meeting, so he wasn’t worried. What he did mind was his eldest son not buying something for the tricycle as he had asked him to: “paano na kapag wala na ako?”

Pol was resting (and Trini singing on her videoke) when the commotion began. She didn’t notice Pol picking up his itak and rushing outside. In an unblinking instant, Pol — who had suddenly found himself at the centre of a swirling mêlée — had been shot in the lung. A few hours later, he was dead.

Read the rest:

Concentric Rings, Part II: land-grabbing, land conversion and the untold human cost


has written 511 articles on this blog.
Tagged with:
 
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
Reddit Facebook Twitter Delicious Mixx StumbleUpon Digg
  • mon

    Isang landgrabber at isang galing sa pamilya ng mga sakim na haciendero. Tanggalin na sa listahan ng pagpipilian.

  • Haringbakal

    @ Lito Ecla: try watching this> the truth behind Hacienda Luisita.

    http://noypi-ako.com/ang-totoong-nangyari-sa-hacienda-luisita-video/

  • len

    dun sa nagsabi na Villar hates muslim opppsss para kang di nagbabasa ng diyaryo o di kaya ay nakikinig ng balita. di mo ba alam kandidato ni Ampatuan si Villar di ba sila ay muslim,

    • kier

      Hindi muslim cna ampatuan, maguindanaon lang sila. a muslim is the one who practices Islam. Ampatuans are not. Just like saying not all tagalogs are christians. Religious affiliations are different from tribes.

  • florence bautista

    di kaya dapat…. AQUINO KINAMKAM ANG LUPA NAMIN SA TARLAC AT DI PA NATUWA PINATAY PA ANG MGA MAGSASAKA ….. AT LEAST KING TOTOO ANG KAY VILLAR WALANG NAMATAY…..KULAY DILAW KASE ANG DUGO NINYO …… By the way di si villar ang iboboto ko … si GIBO

    • Gid

      Walang namatay sa kamay ni Villar? Itanong mo sa mga Dumagat sa Norzagaray at sa San Pedro, Laguna kung ilan sa kanila ang pinatay ng mga security ni Villar para palayasin sila sa mga lupang sinasaka nila.

      Wala kinamkam na lupa si Villar? Itanong mo sa mga Karahumi ng Norzagaray; sa Oton, Iloilo; sa Daang Hari, Cavite; sa Tierra Monte, Marikina; sa Portofino, Cavite, etc.

      Walang pinatay? Itanong mo kay Gibo kung anong ginawa niyang pag-aalaga para kay GMA sa mga Ampatuan ng Maguindanao na siyang pumatay sa mga mga Mangudadatu at mga manunulat at peryodista.

  • catty

    yeah vote for villar para wala ng rebelde!!!! he hates Muslim i think! once, a tausog went on a condom (in mindanao) which is own by Mr. Villar. when he learned that the tausug is a muslim, he refunded that man and let the tausug left the condo.

  • totoy

    magnanakaw at sinungaling

    • basura

      magaling si president villar at marunong sya lumangoy sa dagat ng basura maski wala pang basura sa ilog pasig! hindi sya sinungaling! bOLERO lng! malaki ang pagkakaiba nuon dba?

  • rose

    ang gulo na ng politics.. batuhan pa ng putik. di ako maka villar, sana naman magnilay-nilay nalang tayo who’s president we want, and go for it. hayaan na lang ang iba who they want…

  • lito ecla

    sa akin si villar pa rin ang karao=patdapat kasi isa akong ofw mas marami siyang natulungan sa mga may problemang ofw , si noynoy ano ang ginawa niya? ang nanay panay family values ano reaksiyon niya sa mga palpak na ginawa ni kris? nakisama sa mga may asawa.laging sabi pinatay ang ama niya pero ano reaksiyon niya sa mahigit na 100 magsasaka sa luisita hacienda. pinatay , wala .. ngayon ibibigay niya ang lupa sa mga magsasaka, paano niya magawa yun, sampid lang sila sa mga cojuanco.
    ang message ni villar magsikap ka sarili aasenso ka. marami kasing pinoy takot magbuno sa buhay lahat iasa sa gobyerno. pati kakanin sa araw arw at gamot sa bukay,
    gising pinoy kaya malayo ang ase4nso sa japan kasi malayo tayo sa work ethics nila ok umamin kayuo pare ko…

    • boyhirap

      lito bilib ako sa paninindigan mo para kay villar dahil cguro natulungan ka na nya bilang isang ofw? pero mag iingat ka din sa pag pili mo kay villar dahil baka isa ka din lng sa maraming kababayan natin na napaniwala nya sa maraming taktika nya upang makuha ang pinaka mataas na posisyon sa ating bansa? mas mainam yata na dagdagan mo pa ng koti ang pagiimbistiga sa mga tumatakbo sa pagka pangulo at baka may mas karapatdapat ka pang makita kesa kay vilar na ilang beses na ding ginamit ang kanyang posisyon para lumago ang kanyang negosyo maski itoy nagiging dahilan ng pag buwis ng buhay ng mga tatay, nanay, kapatid kaibigan ng ating mga kababayan sa ibatibang dako ng ating bansa kung saan ang nandoon ang mga subdivision ni villar! dapat pa din cguro natin isipin kung ang ating pagpili ay makaka sama o makakabuti sa mas nakakaraming kababayan natin. at sana tandaan natin na ang pagsisinungaling ay kapatid ng pagnanakaw!

  • Orly

    Marami ng mali sa batas natin dahil sa takot na maulit ang Marcos history. d ako mahilig sa politics, pero para sakin kailangan ang cha-cha, maari pa ring patuloy na tumakbo ang pangulo kahit ilang terms.
    without ending terms: kailangan nyang masumikap na gumawa ng mabuti para ihalal muli sa susunod na election.
    with ending terms: kailangan nyang magpayaman kasi wala na syang work after the terms.

    Sana dalawa lang ang naglalaban para majority ang mananalo.
    kung di talaga mapigilang ang maraming kandidato, sana ibahin ang pag boto, kung magiging success ang automation di na imposible na gawing by priority ang pagboto using 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc.. or by ranking: 100%, 90%, 80% etc. para lumabas na may majority pa rin pag na summarize na all their points.

  • http://philstar.com parikoy77

    mgnada nga pg c villar mnalo lhat ng lupa s pinas gwin nlng pbhay wla ntyo mtnman pgkain…bli nlng tyo vtnam at thailand dmi dn sknla bgas….

  • Gid

    Mudslinging, if ever this article is one, which it is not, is possible only if there is mud. Villar’s problem is that he stands on so much of his own mud his very claims to honesty & integrity don’t stand rigorous scrutiny. His only claim that has stood rigorous scrutiny, thus far, is that he made oodles of money. Period.

    As to how he made lots of money honestly, that is where he fails grossly. It has been an even greater failure on his part to disprove allegations that he made so much money without inflicting even greater human suffering and distress on people who had to vacate their own lands that he just had to acquire, so that he could sell them at cost to the less poor and raise more money for his candidacy, so that he can then build more houses for the poor once he becomes president. Imeldific and circuitous disconnect in values, priorities and sincerity here. (Perhaps, he expected those farmers to rejoice in seeing houses now built on lands that used to give them livelihood and sustenance.)

    Villar cannot be so dishonest as to make gratuitous claims about himself and expect voters to take his word at face value. Honest governance starts with personal honesty in both the candidates and the voters. All candidates have the responsibility to be honest about themselves so they can be perceived as equally, if not more, honest about their platforms. Equally, all voters have the responsibility to determine the truth behind those claims, as well as the responsibility not to quibble and simply call a lie a lie.

    If there is anything black about that, we must then ask, when did exposing corruption, dishonesty and lies start being black propaganda?

    Exposing an illegality, dishonesty or an outright lie can never be black if the blackness uncovered is provable and proven true despite its being (and especially if) striven to be hidden by a public official or a candidate who portrays him/herself to be linen white. It is even more critical and justifiable to expose blackness that equals outright dishonesty if it is founded on a legal mandate that all public officials and a responsible citizenry must abide by.

    If the opposite were true, what then is the relevance and significance of Article XI of the 1987 Constitution (Accountability of Public Officers), R.A 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act) and R.A. 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees)? Indeed, how else do we fight dishonesty, graft and corruption in the public service? By pretending it is enough that we are ourselves clean and saintly innocent despite being parties, by silence and blindness, to the very dishonesty fomented at our own expense?

    All these dirt are of Villar’s own doing, to begin with. When he makes a claim, it is incumbent on us who must vote to scrutinize that claim and find out for ourselves if it is true or not. Consequently, the lies, especially outright lies, must be exposed for what they are. It is, never was, never will be the fault of the investigator who digs up and exposes the lie. It is and should always be Villar’s and all candidates’ responsibility to tell the truth, and nothing but, in the first and only place.

    A political and personal platform can only be as honest as the person who espouses it. A platform cannot be presumed to be more honest than the candidate who lies about himself. I would even daresay that the candidate should be even more patently honest than his own platform. For practical reasons, a platform may not say all that needs to be said, or said candidly in detail, but a candidate for public office simply must make honest claims about him/herself. If that level of honesty is too much to ask of Villar, why should I trust his platform?

    Villar must be mad pretending to be clean while standing in his own mud. Instead of pretending to run a “clean” campaign, why doesn’t he tell his Nanay and ours that he has to run a “clean” campaign precisely because he so much mud to hide?

    The best Mother’s Day gift he can ever give his mother and ours is not money but simple and basic honesty.

  • rigor

    This is a democratic country and every citizen has the right to vote and choose there future leaders…
    Lets be wise, Here are some tips that would help you decide whom to vote for:

    Manny Villar: Pag sia ang nanalo, anu kaya sa tingin nyo ang gagawin nya upang mabawi sa mga ginasta niya sa kampanya??? Remember: billions of pesos.. at dahil siya ay nigosyante, cgurado may tubo yan…=)
    Paanu kya matutupad yung pangarapniyang magkaroon ng sariling lupa at bahay ang mga mahihirap? ibibigay ba niya o patitirahin yung mga mahihirap natin na kababayan sa mga subdivisions nya??? no way….
    Hindi naman niya sinabi kung papanu tayo maahon sa kahirapan eh,,, pamimigay ba niya ang yaman niya?,,

  • queen

    @ money: ur ryt..dirty politics..i wont surprise any longer if r country will b like the political disaster in Thailand(knock on wood)
    @al mansur: oh puso mo..easy lng po;) pero 100% agree ako sayo..

    kht cno nga nmn iboto ntn..hnd nmn bastaBasta aahon ang bansa ntin sa kahirapan eh “crab mentality”..we keep on pulling one another down..damn! mga selfish pa.. pero yko dn ky villar..kc 4 sure pg xa nanalo san mng sulok ng pinas…4 sure…subdivision nya…=)

  • kaitha

    lahat ginamit na ni villar sa politika

    BASURA AT PERA
    BATA AT MATATANDA
    ANG MEDIA AT ANG INA

  • http://mail.mactrading.com.ph alexmagustin

    as a farmer, my utmost concern, which i would like the next president to take a good and clear look, is the importation of rice. we don’t need to import rice because we have enough of it even with el nino. but the agencies concerned opted to import huge volume of rice for the huge commission which they need to finance this election. if there is really scarcity of rice,(low yield) because of el nino, how come the traders are buying our produce for only 12 pesos per kilo? WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE LAW OF SUPPLY AND DEMAND? Maawa po kayo sa mga magsasaka.

  • http://mail.mactrading.com.ph alexmagustin

    villar is desperate. he should be. as election comes nearer, his rating is going down. the people have realized what kind of a person he is. i know from the very start that he is a big, fat liar. TAPUSIN ANG KAHIRAPAN? hahaha. how long has he been in government? may ginawa ba siya to address this intention of his? hindi bawal magpayaman, lalo na kung galing ka sa mahirap. pero dapat gawin ito sa isang patas na labanan. he should not take advantage of the poor to further his own interests.

  • jocelyn gonzales

    please check if this jose nunez who “sold” the land to villar’s company is/was the president of philippine veterans bank – and a close associate of manny zamora, a marcos crony.

  • al mansur

    kahit anung gawin o pagsasabihin nyo,habang di nagkakaisa ang mga pilipino, mayayaman at mayayaman pa rin ang makakaupo bilang presidente! mas marami ang mahihirap ngunit di nag iisip kaya patuloy tayong maghihirap.si villar may nagawa? OO,mga bahay para sa mayayaman! Tunay na mahirap kaya tutulong sa kapwa mahirap? eh di dapat nauna ng umunlad ang kabuhayan ng lahat ng taga Tondo! Plata Porma? Bakit sinusunod ba ito ng mga nanalong kandidato? Majority! Bakit? Papano mo nalaman na majority ang natulungan ng isang kandidato? Dapat sagutin ang mga ipinipukol na issues! Puro Trapo at Dahil sa pera at impluwensya lang naman kaya maraming naghahangad maging presidente di ba? maka Gibo ka man o Noynoy,villar o kung sinong hudas pa man dyan, Tayong mahihirap ay patuloy na maghihirap sa kasalukuyang pamamalakad at istilo ng ating pamahalaan!!!!

  • http://www.jcmiras.net Money

    Totoo naman yong advertisement ni Villar na “pangarap niyang magkabahay ang bawat Pilipino”, kaso lang may bayad – bibilhin sa real estate company niya.

  • gel

    Let it be said…talagang ganyan ang politika dito sa atin. Batuhan nga daw ng putik. Lets set aside those things, ang tignan natin ang platform of government ng bawat kandidato. That will be our basis in chosing our candidate. A candidate na may may nagawa na at napatunayan na sa kanyang sarili…at marami ang natulungan. Doon tayo sa majority at hindi and ilan lang nakinabang.

    • Bong

      Character is very important for me. Any person who sees nothing wrong in using his position to enrich himself is very dangerous. If that person believes that all his transactions are above board, he must answer every issue under oath where lying can be penalized. In press releases, one is not obliged to tell the truth completely because he is not under oath. This is one thing that some laymen do not understand completely. And this is the reason why some people would not face senate or house inquiry and would rather use media,

    • http://www.philstar.com kuh

      you’re absolutely right, korek ka dya ika nga dito sa pinas..pro wag mo din kalimutan ang background ng mga nag bibigay ng mga platform nila … how can you set aside an issue on a specific candidate running for the highest position in the country that has an outstanding court cases involving anomalous dealings using his/her position to manipulate authorities decision to gain more profit or advantageous to their personal interest .. wake up and smell the coffee fellow country men it’s time for us to unite and get rid off all these leeches in our government … nobody can help us but our own concern citizens … we need no more laws, we are already saturated with laws on the land. what we need is political will to implement these laws accordingly no matter who violates these laws… changes cannot be done by mouth , easier said than done if we are really serious about achieving the changes we want this is the time for us to do it by putting the right people in the gov’t not by selling our only weapon in achieving the changes we need to prosper as a nation…

      • http://yahoo JNelson

        Correct. I strongly agree with you Kuh. We already have so many laws. What lacks is the will to implement them…I am offering to God my choice as of the moment….I will vote for Gibo.

  • MBV

    If this is black propaganda, why is it that he doesn’t seem to have the “balls” for face this issue? Let us support his presidency so that he could give every Filipino family a house. A house built on the Republic of Camella Homes.

    • Gid

      make sure the house and lot are free and the land title shows it wasn’t grabbed from the farmers. oh, btw, make sure no one died when he grabbed the land.

    • moonlite_58

      yah right..if he win…mas lalo lang sya yayaman…kailangan nya manalo para sa safety ng mga negosyo nya…at mapagtakpan mga nagawa nyang anomalya….maging mapag usisa po tayo..matagal na tau naghirap dhil sa maling pagpili natin sa ating magi2ng pangulo…be wise!!!!choose the right leader….God bless our nation…

  • migz

    these are facts that have been remained unanswered by the villar camp. kung talagang walang katotohanan ang mga ito bakit hindi niya harapin ang mga isyung ibinabato sa kanya. shame on him!

  • redz dueno

    iboto ninyo si Villar para siya at ang familya na lang niya ang mag magmay-ari sa buong Pilipinas.

    • macoy

      I’ll vote Villar para lalo siyang yumaman. Tapusin ang kahirapan kasi patay na ang mahihirap sa gutom heheheheh…

  • Maria

    This is all black propaganda. If Villar is not qualified for the presidency.. Mas lalo na si Aquino.

    • myg1bo

      @Maria- tell that to the farmers!

      • http://www.philstar.com kuh

        Maria gumising ka wag kang kumampi dahil sa ang soporta mo ay sa kanya … walang negosyanteng nagpapalugi at siguradong nde namimigay ng pera na walang kikitain noh.. isa ka sa mga bulag na mamamyan ng ating bansang pilipinas … tignan mo yung mga documento at dahil sa maraming mataas na kasangkot sa anomalya ng mga politikong kagaya nya nde aasenso ang ating bansa at siguradong nde din magkakaroon ng pagbabago na hinahangad natin mga mamayan ng ating bansang pilipinas ….

    • moonlite_58

      tama ka maria….both of theme are not qualified…villar and aquino has there own agenda in this election…dapat wag natin cla iboto pareho!!!!!!!!!…dmi namn tau kandidato….Gibo would be better…

    • dok0t23

      Maria..Ka luoy nlang sa Pinas kung si Villar ang mo daog. Did you really think its BLACK PROPAGANDA??? Lets all try to wake up from this sh*T that we are in. They are all saying the same thing over and over and nothing good comes out of it. Its been always this way and until when are we planning stop from all this lies and deceit?

      Actually i don’t know who to endorse or give my vote to. To be blunt, its always been this people serving us in the government. The same RICH, CORRUPT and WORTHLESS family and individual that provides all the promises and help they could give to every Filipino.

      To Filipinos everywhere, vote wisely this coming election.

      P.S. I honesty believe that Villar is a person with no Integrity whatsoever.lol..

  • http://none Norberto

    Surely, Mr. Villar became billionaire overnight, and it was justified by this article as Crown Asia his business realty firm engaged in landgrabbing and developing lands turning to a flourishing subdivisions sacrificing the peaceful homes of the rightful settlers.

    How can we believe him to be a loving President, a man for the masses, and a poor who became rich and love the poor. The articale is an eye opener to the Villar follower to make up and their choice for the right president.