House sets own probe into Chocolate Hills resort issue

BUSINESS WITHIN THE HILLS Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort in Sagbayan, Bohol, shown in this August 2023 photo, has trended on social media after netizens called out the government and
its owners for allowing its construction and operation within the protected area.  (LEO UDTOHAN / INQUIRER)

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives is set to conduct its own investigation on the operation of a controversial resort within the Chocolate Hills protected area in Bohol.

Deputy Majority Leader for Communications and ACT-CIS party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo bared this plan during a press conference on Thursday, saying that he has already coordinated this with House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

“We are set to file on Monday a motu proprio inquiry on the matter. The House leadership will not take this lightly, and I’m in communication with Speaker [Martin Romualdez], who is out of the country. But I already told him we will file an inquiry because I am his communications director,” Tulfo said.

Captain’s Peak Resort went viral after its video made rounds on social media and garnered mixed reactions among netizens on Wednesday.

On the same day, Senator Nancy Binay, chairperson of the committee on tourism, filed Senate Resolution No. 967, which seeks to conduct a probe on the issue.

After drawing questions related to its operations, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) bared that it already issued a temporary closure order and a notice of violation against the resort on September 6, 2023, and January 22, 2024, respectively.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) likewise disclosed that the resort has not applied for accreditation.

According to Tulfo, they aim to find out who issued the resort’s owner a building permit to erect the establishment within Chocolate Hills, which has been declared a protected area since July 1, 1997, under Proclamation No. 1037.

“Tinignan ko di nga nila ginalaw nasa gitna sila ng dalawang hills pero sinira po nila yung view. Ngayon ang panget na tinignan pag nag aerial shot ka para siyang kulugo. Kumbaga parang tumubong kulugo sa mukha mo,” he stressed.

(I looked at it, and although they did not ruin the hills, the resort was in the middle of it, which ruined the view. It looks like a wart in an aerial shot. It’s like a wart on your face, so to speak.)

Tulfo said they will invite to the hearing officials from the Land Registration Authority, the DENR, and the provincial government of Bohol, among others, for the investigation.