GENERAL SANTOS CITY—The local government unit in this city is facing a serious problem over the 973-hectare landholdings forcibly occupied by about 6,000 families by one Rodrigo Olarte who claimed to be an heir of the landed Olarte, Hermanos clan in the city.
The Olarte Hermanos on record were a multifaceted community. The family derives from two brothers—Alberto and Jose—in the Philippines who lived in the early part of the 20th century. The Olarte Hermanos were said to have invested in land and formed a company known today as Olarte Hermnaos y Cia but had lost their 973-hectare landholdings due to the alleged mismanagement of their company during the 1980s.
The 973 hectares of land in this city had been developed for housing currently owned by Espina and Madarang company, a Cebu City-based investor.
Since the 1980s a struggle for occupancy of the land continued with one faction, developing the land as a subdivision. It was only in 2017 until 2018 when the city government was pressured to resolve the encroachment of the land by a certain claimant.
GenSan City Mayor Ronnel C. Rivera said in his official statement to the media that the encroachment of 6,000 families of the 973 hectares owned by the family of Espina and Madarang has yet to settle the issue in the court, “but we are doing our very best to resolve the problem for both parties on a win-win solution,” Rivera said.
For almost a decade, the 973 hectares was left alone. It was only recently when illegal settlers forcibly occupied the area, Rivera added.
Rodrigo, who claimed to be an heir to the landholdings aid by the Espina and Madarang company, was allegedly holding a fake land title of the property. He claimed “the 973 hectares were originally owned by my family—Olarte Hermanos—and I have all the proof that these landholdings we occupy right now is owned by my elders,” Rodrigo said.