Aetas’ return to landslide-prone Pampanga village bucked

DANGER ZONE The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) says the mountain village of Diaz in Porac town, Pampanga province, is susceptible to landslides, as shown by eroded roads leading to the Aeta community. —PHOTO COURTESY OF MGB CENTRAL LUZON

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—The prospect remained bleak for at least 117 Aeta families to return to their village in Porac town, Pampanga province, after they were displaced by the 6.1-magnitude earthquake that hit Central Luzon in April last year.

On Monday, Gov. Dennis Pineda turned down their plan to move back to Barangay Diaz, citing the geohazard assessment by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB).

ResettlementThe MGB had recommended the upland village, along with Barangay Nabuklod in Floridablanca town, to be a “no habitation zone” because of its “very high susceptibility” to landslides.

Juanilo dela Cruz, village chief of Diaz, said they wan­ted to come back because the area is part of their ancestral domain. “We also thought that the resettlement project would not push through,” he said during a dialogue at the provincial capitol.

Elizabeth Baybayan, provincial welfare officer, said the local government would still build a 2-hectare resettlement site in Barangay Babo Pangulo, also in Porac.

“The transfer of the title, procurement of materials and other processes are taking time according to government rules,” she said, referring to the delayed resettlement project.

Dela Cruz said they preferred a 1-ha site at the foothills of Babo Pangulo because it was near a river.

Pineda has organized a team to check the area and study its feasibility for a resettlement site.

At least 100 Aeta families from Barangay Inararo have been temporarily living at Barangay Villa Maria, also in Porac. Inararo is the nearest village on the Pampanga side of Mt. Pinatubo, a volcano that last erupted on June 15, 1991.

The MGB also advised the Aetas of Inararo to stay in Villa Maria because of large cracks on the roads leading to the place.

The April 22 quake killed five people and injured nine workers of a supermarket that collapsed seconds after the ground shook. —TONETTE OREJAS INQ