NCIP: Benguet ancestral lands along path of PMA expansion

BAGUIO CITY—An investigation by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) confirmed that a proposed expansion of the Philippine Military Academy reservation here would intrude into Ibaloy ancestral lands in nearby Tuba town in Benguet province.

Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu endorsed the inclusion of 105 hectares within Tuba into the PMA reservation, possibly through a presidential proclamation.

But the expansion would affect two ancestral land claims, among them the applications for certificates of ancestral land title by Andrew Pilanta over 501,939 square meters of land in Tuba, and by Paulita Solana for 506,360 sq m, according to a report from lawyer Harriet Abyadang, NCIP Cordillera legal officer.

“The referral to the NCIP was deemed necessary and urgent considering that the proposed proclamation is [also] within the ancestral domain of Tuba,” Abyadang said in her report to NCIP commissioners in Manila.

On Monday, the Benguet provincial board approved a resolution urging Malacañang to allow consultations with Ibaloy residents before it approves the PMA expansion. —KIMBERLIE QUITASOL