EDITORIAL
Who takes the blame?
The controversial Captain Hills Resort was
conceptualized as early as 2018 according to
reports.Its presence at the UNESCO World Heritage
SiteChocolate Hills Natural Monument by reason of
the construction of the resort did not go unnoticed. It
was simply unfolded before our environment-blind
eyes who welcomed the resort as an additional
attraction, despite its artificial nature and no match to
the beauty of the iconic hills.
It all started when the Chocolate Hills Natural
Monument (CHNM)-Protected Area Management
Board (PAMB), the body which is supposed to be the
gatekeeper of all the proposed development projects
within the protected area, approved PAMB Resolution
No. 1, s. 2018, allowing the proposed project which
includes the establishment of a function hall,
landmark, photo booth, swimming pool, cottages,
shower and dressing room, parking area, coconut
garden, flower garden, and water fountain, under
certain conditions.
The LGU granted permit to the resort in 2019 and
2020using the PAMB Resolution as one of the
supporting documents. The resort was also granted
building permits. Even before a single post was
erected from the ground, DENR was already involved.
In 2021, it conducted a projection and ground
verification leading to its issuance of classification
status which declared the land as “alienable and
disposable.”
In 2022, the CHNM-PAMB deliberated on the
proposal to transfer the development of amenities and
facilities such as the swimming pool, cottages and
function hall from its initial project sites near the
Chocolate Hills protected zone to the resort’s parking
area.DENR Central Visayas Director PaquitoMelicor
Jr. signed Resolution No. 21, s. 2022, endorsing the
development of Captain’s Peak Resort within the
CHNM.
Everything seemed perfect then. Nobody noticed
the mistake. Until the Freeman, a newspaper outside
Bohol, published in-depth report about projects that
are ruining Chocolate Hills. As the issue went public,
some local lawmakers took advantage of its potential
media mileage and called for an investigation.Majority
of our local leaders, though, acted like Pontious Pilate
– literally washing hands in public to wash away
responsibility. Most of the incumbent and local
officials cited the most convenient excuse of having no
involvement in the approval of the project. The
Governor was quoted saying that the construction did
not happen during his tenure as the top provincial
leader.
LGU Sagbayan owned the responsibility for
issuing the permits but points to the PAMB resolution
as the cause that sets the wheel into motion, skirting
around a direct admission by passing the blame to the
CHNM-PAMB. The rest joined the fray by asking
DENR, DILG, DOT, and the Senate to conduct an
investigation – as if our local government units are
powerless to stop the project when it was still a mere
proposal.
So, who takes the blame? The ancient Hebrews
would sacrifice one goat for the Lord and lead another
one into the wilderness bearing the sins of the
people.As Boholanos, let us stop finding scapegoats
among us. Let us own it. We have harmed God’s gift
to the Boholanos, the country, and the entire world
either by commission or by omission. While some
may be held directly accountable, just like in many
other environmental disasters in the past, we have
committed the greatest mistake of complacency–for
seeing something wrong as right.