Aklan town execs set terms for reclamation project

MUNICIPAL officials of Malay town in Aklan have given their “conditional” support to a controversial reclamation project being undertaken by the provincial government in barangay Caticlan, the jump-off point to Boracay Island.

But Dionisio Salme, the president of Boracay Foundation Inc. (BFI), said business owners on the world-famous island would not withdraw their petition pending at the Supreme Court and would wait for a final ruling on it. The high tribunal earlier suspended the reclamation project.

In a resolution approved unanimously during the municipal council’s regular session on Feb. 28, the officials withdrew their opposition to the project but said they would revoke their endorsement if the provincial government failed to comply to certain conditions.

These include a 2.6-hectare limit of the project coverage and for the provincial government to conduct a comprehensive study on environmental impact and to implement possible mitigating measures.

The council also required the allocation of office space for the municipality in the building proposed in the reclaimed area and to ensure that local transportation operators would not be displaced.

Malay Councilor Jonathan Cabrera, a member of the committee on laws, described the resolution as a “win-win” solution for all parties in the dispute. Governor Carlito Marquez earlier asked the council’s support for the project. /inquirer