MANILA, Philippines?The Supreme Court has dismissed a petition filed by the Makati City government which sought to nullify two special patents issued by former President Fidel Ramos that placed parts of Fort Bonifacio under the jurisdiction of Taguig City.

The court said it could not entertain Makati?s petition because of a pending civil case filed by the Taguig City government asking the court to define its territorial boundaries.

The petition from Taguig was filed in 1993 while Makati submitted its petition three years later.

Boundary issue

?Although petitioners insist that what they seek is a nullification of Special Patent Nos. 3595 and 3596, what petitioners wish to nullify is not Special Patent Nos. 3595 and 3596, but the wordings therein that the property is located in the Municipality of Taguig. To do so would entail going into the issue of boundaries of Makati and Taguig, which is the issue in [another civil case],? the high tribunal said in a June 27 decision penned by Justice Leonardo Quisumbing.

Under SP 3595, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority took over more than three million square meters of land in Fort Bonifacio. On the other hand, SP 3596 canceled SP 3595 and gave to the Fort Bonifacio Development Corp. more than two million-sq m of land in Fort Bonifacio. Both patents were issued in 1995.

Similarities

The court said there were similarities in the civil case filed by Taguig to determine its boundaries and in the petition filed by the Makati City government against the two special patents.

There is also a similarity of issues since both cases ultimately deal with the boundaries of the two cities, it added.

The court pointed out that if a judgment is rendered in the petition filed by the Makati City government, it would affect the outcome of the case filed by Taguig.