GenSan wants to settle boundary disputes with neighbors
Vice Mayor Shirlyn Banas-Nograles said the city needs to open negotiations with the municipalities of Maasim and Malungon in Sarangani, and Polomolok in South Cotabato to address the problems over their overlapping boundaries.
She specifically cited the dispute of Barangay San Jose with Maasim, Barangay Upper Labay with Malungon and Barangay Apopong with Polomolok.[]
“It is prudent for us to look into these boundary issues now,” the vice mayor said.
Nograles initially proposed for the conduct of joint sessions with the councils of the three municipalities.
She said the joint sessions will mainly focus on the crafting of “appropriate courses of action that will eventually resolve these issues.”
“Taking appropriate and prompt actions on these will spare the city of possible major repercussions, which could result to losses in total land area as well as much needed revenues,” the official said.
Aside from the external boundary problems, Nograles said the city council should also settle pending internal disputes.
She specifically cited the conflicting boundary claims between Barangays Calumpang and Fatima here.[]
The vice mayor said the problem is mainly due to the lack of technical descriptions on boundaries of majority of the city’s 26 barangays.
“Only seven barangays have existing technical descriptions of their boundaries, with a number of these even inaccurately identified,” she said.
These are barangays of Calumpang, City Heights, Dadiangas North, Dadiangas East, Dadiangas West, Dadiangas South, Fatima, and Olympog.
“There is an urgent need to once and for all establish the boundaries of each of the 26 barangays of the city and to craft an ordinance specifying their political jurisdictions, so as to effectively enforce existing laws and policies that are applicable,” she added. (MindaNews)
