Taguig-Makati turf war also leaves SPD in quandary

With two cities under its watch battling for control of Fort Bonifacio, the Southern Police (SPD) has also been left in a quandary on what to do.

Despite a recent Court of Appeals decision transferring the jurisdiction of Fort Bonifacio from Taguig City to Makati City, the mayors of Taguig and Makati remain at loggerheads over whether the decision was “immediate and executory” or not.

The issue was highlighted on Thursday, when Makati police deployed to secure city engineers surveying Palar village in Barangay Southside within the disputed area, faced off with personnel from the Taguig public order and safety and office (Poso), who were bringing their  own  engineers to  city hall.

While admitting that the period of transition was “problematic,” SPD director Chief Supt. Jose Erwin Villacorte told the Inquirer  that as far as police jurisdiction over the disputed area is concerned, they would retain the status quo.

For the past decade, the Taguig police has had jurisdiction over Fort Bonifacio, even setting up a police outpost in Palar in 2002, much to the chagrin of Makati officials.

Villacorte admitted   that they could not act otherwise “until we receive a directive from the [National Capital Region Police Office] director.”

“We have not received a copy of the court decision. We have asked guidance from [regional director Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo] regarding the controversy. He said he would write the secretary of interior and local government,” Villacorte said.

He added, however, that  he did not see the presence of Makati police on Thursday in Barangay Southside as a breach of jurisdiction. “Following the court decision, Makati engineers were just surveying the area. The Makati police was just providing them security, just in case.”

Villacorte denied the Fort Bonifacio dispute was causing a rift among the local police, saying the matter would only require “a realignment of police forces.”

In a statement on Friday, however, Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano said she was “appalled by Makati’s show of force” on Thursday.

Cayetano explained that since the engineers were conducting “unauthorized” surveys, the Poso team was sent to “peacefully invite the Makati engineers for a discussion.”

“But the Makati police showed up and used an unnecessary amount of force to take them [back],” she said, citing the presence of  eight Makati police cars containing more than 30 policemen and a fully-armed Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team.

Cayetano’s statement included photos of Makati police allegedly threatening to draw their firearms.

“This is precisely what we were trying to avoid when I appealed to Mayor Junjun Binay to refrain from undertaking acts that would only sow confusion and tension in Fort Bonifacio,” she added, also noting that signages of Makati ordinances were already being posted in the area.