Calamba realty execs up in arms, demand register of deeds’ ouster

CALAMBA CITY—Land developers and bankers called for the replacement of the registrar of deeds in Calamba over alleged “anomalous and discriminatory” practices in the issuance of land titles.

Led by the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders’ Asssociation Inc. (Creba), an umbrella group in the real estate and housing industry, the groups pushed for the ouster of lawyer Joven Allegre.

The Calamba office of the Land Registration Authority (LRA) handles 150-250 transactions a day. It covers the first and second districts of Laguna that include San Pedro, Biñan City, Sta. Rosa City, Cabuyao, Calamba City, Los Baños and Bay.

On Monday, Creba, joined by the Calamba Laguna Realtors Board Inc., Real Estate Brokers Association of the Philippines-Laguna, Geodetic Engineers of the Philippines-Laguna, Federation of Laguna Rural Banks, Bankers Club of Calamba and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Laguna, received support from Calamba City Mayor Joaquin Chipeco in bringing the matter to the attention of LRA administrator Eulalio Diaz III, who has jurisdiction over the selection of registrars.

Chipeco said with real estate as one of the biggest earning sectors in the city, business transactions must be kept smooth, but lawyer Rudy Castillo, Creba chair in Laguna, said “delays and higher fees” have become the norm in the LRA office in Calamba.

Pressed for comment on the petition to oust him, Allegre said he has yet to receive a copy of the petition “so I cannot answer it intelligently.”

He admitted backlogs but said his office was able to cut down a normally one-month transaction to around 10 to 15 days since he assumed office. The delays, he said, were due to a computerization system which his office was still adjusting to.

“Perhaps this is a wake-up call,” he said. “My sincere apologies to those who are unhappy but we are doing our job to the point of rendering overtime without pay.”

In its petition, Creba said issuance of land titles and mortgage registration take “several weeks to months of waiting, but with the right ‘persuasion’ and ‘representation’ may only take a day or two.” The group didn’t elaborate what it meant by “persuasion” and “representation.”