Case Digest: Pilar Development Corporation vs. Dumadag, G.R. No. 194336. March 11, 2013.

Easement

CASE TITLE: Pilar Development Corporation vs. Dumadag

GR No/ Date:  G.R. No. 194336. March 11, 2013.*

PONENTE: Peralta, J.

CASE WITH THE SC: Petition for Review on Certiorari under Rule 45

PROCEDURAL ANTECEDENTS:

  1. RTC - Complaint for accion publiciana with damages

  2. CA - Petition for Review

FACTS:

  • On July 1, 2002, petitioner filed a Complaint for accion publiciana with damages against respondents for building shanties on its 5,613-square-meter property without its consent.

  • The property is registered under TCT No. 481436, intended as an open space for recreational facilities for subdivision residents.

  • RTC: Dismissed the complaint.

    • Ruled the land as public property due to its location within the three-meter legal easement leading to Mahabang Ilog Creek, making it part of public dominion.

  • CA: Affirmed the trial court's decision, emphasizing that the disputed area is reserved for public easement as indicated in the title.

    • Ruled that the Republic of the Philippines, through the Office of the Solicitor General, is the proper party to seek recovery of possession.

ISSUE:

Whether the petitioner, as the registered owner of the 5,613-square-meter property, retains ownership and has the right to recover possession of the portion of the property occupied by the respondent.

ARGUMENTS/LEGAL BASES  

PETITIONER

RESPONDENTS

  • Petitioners argued that despite the reservation for public easement, it retains ownership of the property.

  • The petitioner claims it is entitled to lawful possession and can file for recovery of possession against the respondents under Articles 428 and 539 of the Civil Code.

  • Respondents argued that the local government has jurisdiction over the property, not the petitioner.

PREVAILING PARTY: -

DECISION/DOCTRINE:


We deny.


An easement or servitude is a real right on another's property, corporeal and immovable, whereby the owner of the latter must refrain from doing or allowing somebody else to do or something to be done on his or her property, for the benefit of another person or tenement; it is jus in re aliena, inseparable from the estate to which it actively or passively belongs, indivisible, perpetual, and a continuing property right, unless extinguished by causes provided by law. The Code defines easement as an encumbrance imposed upon an immovable for the benefit of another immovable belonging to a different owner or for the benefit of a community, or of one or more persons to whom the encumbered estate does not belong.


There are two kinds of easement according to source: by law or by will of the owners the former are called legal and the latter voluntary easement.


A legal easement or compulsory easement, or an easement by necessity constituted by law has for its object either public use or the interest of private persons.


While Article 630 of the Code provides for the general rule that "the owner of the servient estate retains the ownership of the portion on which the easement is established, and may use the same in such a manner as not to affect the exercise of the easement," Article 635 thereof is specific in saying that "all matters concerning easements established for public or communal use shall be governed by the special laws and regulations relating thereto, and, in the absence thereof, by the provisions of this Title Title VII on Easements or Servitudes."


In the case at bar, the applicability of DENR A.O. No. 99-21 dated June 11, 1999, which superseded DENR A.O. No. 97-0519 dated March 6, 1997 and prescribed the revised guidelines in the implementation of the pertinent provisions of Republic Act (R.A.) No. 1273 and Presidential Decree (P.D.) Nos. 705 and 1067, cannot be doubted. Inter alia, it was issued to further the government's program of biodiversity preservation. Aside from Section 2.1 above-quoted, Section 2.3 of which further mandates:


2.3 Survey of Titled Lands:


2.3.1 Administratively Titled Lands:


The provisions of item 2.1.a and 2.1.b shall be observed as the above. However, when these lands are to be subdivided, consolidated or consolidated-subdivided, the strip of three (3) meters which falls within urban areas shall be demarcated and marked on the plan for easement and bank protection.


The purpose of these strips of land shall be noted in the technical description and annotated in the title.


x x x


2.3.3 Complex Subdivision or Consolidation Subdivision Surveys for Housing/Residential, Commercial or Industrial Purposes:


When titled lands are subdivided or consolidated-subdivided into lots for residential, commercial or industrial purposes the segregation of the three (3) meter wide strip along the banks of rivers or streams shall be observed and be made part of the open space requirement pursuant to P.D. 1216.


The strip shall be preserved and shall not be subject to subsequent subdivision. 


Certainly, in the case of residential subdivisions, the allocation of the 3-meter strip along the banks of a stream, like the Mahabang Ilog Creek in this case, is required and shall be considered as forming part of the open space requirement pursuant to P.D. 1216 dated October 14, 1977. Said law is explicit: open spaces are "for public use and are, therefore, beyond the commerce of men" and that "[the] areas reserved for parks, playgrounds and recreational use shall be non-alienable public lands, and non-buildable."


Running in same vein is P.D. 1067 or The Water Code of the Philippines which provides:


Art. 51. The banks of rivers and streams and the shores of the seas and lakes throughout their entire length and within a zone of three (3) meters in urban areas, twenty (20) meters in agricultural areas and forty (40) meters in forest areas, along their margins, are subject to the easement of public use in the interest of recreation, navigation, floatage, fishing and salvage. No person shall be allowed to stay in this zone longer than what is necessary for recreation, navigation, floatage, fishing or salvage or to build structures of any kind. 


Thus, the above prove that petitioner's right of ownership and possession has been limited by law with respect to the 3-meter strip/zone along the banks of Mahabang Ilog Creek. Despite this, the Court cannot agree with the trial court's opinion, as to which the CA did not pass upon, that respondents have a better right to possess the subject portion of the land because they are occupying an area reserved for public easement purposes. Similar to petitioner, respondents have no right or title over it precisely because it is public land. Likewise, we repeatedly held that squatters have no possessory rights over the land intruded upon. The length of time that they may have physically occupied the land is immaterial; they are deemed to have entered the same in bad faith, such that the nature of their possession is presumed to have retained the same character throughout their occupancy.


As to the issue of who is the proper party entitled to institute a case with respect to the 3-meter strip/zone, We find and so hold that both the Republic of the Philippines, through the OSG and the local government of Las Piñas City, may file an action depending on the purpose sought to be achieved. The former shall be responsible in case of action for reversion under C.A. 141, while the latter may also bring an action to enforce the relevant provisions of Republic Act No. 7279 (otherwise known as the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992).


Under R.A. 7279, which was enacted to uplift the living conditions in the poorer sections of the communities in urban areas and was envisioned to be the antidote to the pernicious problem of squatting in the metropolis, all local government units (LGUs) are mandated to evict and demolish persons or entities occupying danger areas such as esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dumps, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, and other public places such as sidewalks, roads, parks, and playgrounds. Moreover, under pain of administrative and criminal liability in case of non-compliance, it obliges LGUs to strictly observe the following:


Section 29. Resettlement. - Within two (2) years from the effectivity of this Act, the local government units, in coordination with the National Housing Authority, shall implement the relocation and resettlement of persons living in danger areas such as esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dumps, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, and in other public places such as sidewalks, roads, parks and playgrounds. The local government unit, in coordination with the National Housing Authority, shall provide relocation or resettlement sites with basic services and facilities and access to employment and livelihood opportunities sufficient to meet the basic needs of the affected families.


Section 30. Prohibition Against New Illegal Structures. - It shall be unlawful for any person to construct any structure in areas mentioned in the preceding section. After the effectivity of this Act, the barangay, municipal or city government units shall prevent the construction of any kind or illegal dwelling units or structures within their respective localities. The head of any local government unit concerned who allows, abets or otherwise tolerates the construction of any structure in violation of this section shall be liable to administrative sanctions under existing laws and to penal sanctions provided for in this Act.


Yet all is not lost for petitioner. It may properly file an action for mandamus to compel the local government of Las Piñas City to enforce with reasonable dispatch the eviction, demolition, and relocation of respondents and any other persons similarly situated in order to give flesh to one of the avowed policies of R.A. 7279, which is to reduce urban dysfunctions, particularly those that adversely affect public health, safety, and ecology. 


Indeed, as one of the basic human needs, housing is a matter of state concern as it directly and significantly affects the general welfare.


WHEREFORE, the petition is DENIED. The March 5, 2010 Decision and October 29, 2010 Resolution of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. CV No. 90254, which affirmed the May 30, 2007 Decision of the Las Piñas RTC, Branch 197, dismissing petitioner's complaint, is hereby AFFIRMED.


SO ORDERED.

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