Presidential Decree no. 1216 Section 31: Private property v. public property rights: The BF Subdivision case

• Main Author: Bathan, J.P. Byron M.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2009
• Subjects: Open spaces—Law and legislation—Philippines; Government property—Philippines; Gifts—Law and legislation—Philippines; Property Law and Real Estate
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_masteral/6599; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etd_masteral/article/12867/viewcontent/CDTG004437_P.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

“Property and law are born together, and die together. Before laws were made there was no property; take away laws and property ceases.” (Bentham, 1887) The question of what is public and private property has long plagued our judicial system. As early as 1909 (Cariño v. Insular Government, 1909), disputes as to ownership of property had existed. This persisted even up till now with the recent decisions of the Supreme Court in 2004 (Dueñas v. Santos Subdivision Homeowners Association, 2004) and in 2006 (Aniano Albon v. Bayani Fernando, 2006). The recent decisions particularly deal with a provision stated under Presidential Decree No. 1216 wherein donation of roads, alleys, sidewalks and open spaces within the subdivision has been mandated. Despite these rulings however, little is known as to the extent of the application of this provision and its possible consequences after its implementation. The Supreme Court had ruled that such exercise is police power but the proponent suggest it is eminent domain that lacks the requisite of compensation. Although a gray area exists what power is being exercised by the government, it is clear that property may not be “regulated” in the guise of police power if such regulation amounts to taking and therefore requiring payment of just compensation. The immediate objectives of this study is to determine the validity of the aforesaid provision in P.D. 1216 and the alternative courses of action that can be taken in order to solve this particular problem. A law’s validity is determined by the concurrence of requisites as laid down by laws and current jurisprudence. The alternative courses of action will be determined through the use of Kepner-Tregoe decision analysis. The result of this study will provide answers to the elusive questions pertaining to the effects of the donation and the rights and obligations appurtenant thereto.