DENR scraps contract with Masungi Georeserve developer

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) announced Friday the cancellation of its over two-decade-old deals with the property firm behind the Masungi Georeserve initiative due to alleged issues on legality and failure to execute terms within the contract.

In a letter to Blue Star Construction and Development Corp. president Ben Dumaling, the DENR notified the firm that it was scrapping their 2002 Supplemental Agreement.

The Environment Department cited the following reasons:

• Lack of required Presidential Proclamation declaring the subject matter of the contract for housing purposes
• No document to prove that the proposed construction went through regular procurement or bidding process
• Failure to deliver the 5,000-unit Garden Cottages housing project within five years from signing on November 15, 2002

With this, the DENR demanded with finality that Blue Star vacate the premises covered by its agreement, particularly the 300-hectare area where the Masungi Georeserve conservation project in Rizal is located.

In previous years, both the Senate and House of Representatives conducted investigations into Masungi amid reported violation of laws and violence among claimants.

The DENR, in a separate statement, said it came up with its decision "after several investigations that started in 2014."

The agency said the 5,000-unit Garden Cottages housing project was intended for employees of various government agencies including the DENR, Department of Education (then Department of Education, Culture and Sports), Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of National Defense, Department of Transportation (then Department of Transportation and Communications), Office of the President and the Presidential Management Staff.

"The additional government housing units covered by the 2002 Supplemental Agreement were to be located in Lot 10, where the Dumaliang family also built structures and currently operates the Masungi Georeserve, a resort that charges visitors for day treks to caves, stone formations, trails, and rope bridges," the DENR said.

"The Garden Cottages, covered by the 1997 Joint Venture Agreement and which were originally intended as housing for government employees, are now venues for weddings and pre-nuptial shoots for which the Dumaliangs also charge a fee," it added.

The DENR, moreover, said the supplemental agreement was canceled for lack of the required Presidential Proclamation that should declare Lot 10 as open for disposition to develop housing units within the area.

"The said area was registered under the Republic of the Philippines in Original Certificate of Title (OCT) 3556 and later on transferred to Bureau of Corrections and DENR Region IV-A (Calabarzon)," the agency said.

Protecting our forests

In a statement, Masungi Georeserve Foundation Inc. lamented the DENR's move to cancel the 2002 agreement covering the lot for conservation site, saying the agency "has chosen to go after those protecting our forests instead of those destroying them."

"While it continues to approve destructive quarries, private resorts, and industrial projects that irreparably harm our watersheds, it is using taxpayer money to target Masungi Georeserve—a globally recognized conservation initiative—and its affiliated company Blue Star which started the conservation and protection efforts in the area," Masungi Georeserve Foundation said.

"For over two decades, Masungi and Blue Star have been on the frontlines, defending our forests against land grabbers, illegal quarries, and powerful vested interests," it added.

Masungi Georeserve Foundation said the project was competitively bidded out by the DENR and won by Blue Star.

"Under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's directive, the 2002 Supplemental Joint Venture Agreement (SJVA) contributed an additional 300 hectares (Lot 10/Masungi Georeserve) to the project. This expansion is based on the provisions of law, which allows a government project to be expanded or extended without additional bidding under certain conditions," it said.

"Let us be clear—it is the DENR who is at fault here. It has stubbornly refused to carry out its contractual obligation to clear the area of large-scale illegal occupants, liens, and encumbrances, causing delays to the project and significant injury to its private sector partner," it added.

Responding to a query by GMA News Online, the foundation said its statement Friday was released jointly with Blue Star.

Legal remedies

Masungi Georeserve Foundation said it has yet to receive the notice of cancellation from the DENR.

"Rest assured, we have anticipated this action by the DENR Secretary Ma. Antonia 'Toni' Yulo-Loyzaga. We are confident of the legal remedies available to us to stay the order, continue our work, and save Masungi," it said.

"We will fight not just in defense of Masungi but in defense of environmental justice for all. We call on the Filipino people to see through this deception and stand with us in protecting the last remaining forests of our generation. The future of our watersheds—and of generations to come—depends on it," it added.

The Masungi Georeserve is a conservation project in Rizal that has won international awards including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG) Action Award for Inspire Category in 2022. — VDV, GMA Integrated News