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SECRETARY OF DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT v. MAYOR JOSE S. YAP

FACTS:

The case involves two consolidated petitions concerning the rights of current occupants of Boracay Island to secure titles over the lands they occupy. Boracay Island, located in the Municipality of Malay, Aklan and renowned for its sandy beaches and tourism, is home to 12,003 inhabitants who claim ownership of various parcels of land on the island. On April 14, 1976, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) approved the National Reservation Survey of Boracay Island, identifying several lots as occupied or claimed by various individuals. Subsequently, on November 10, 1978, President Ferdinand Marcos issued Proclamation No. 1801, declaring Boracay Island and other places as tourist zones and marine reserves under the administration of the Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA). Respondents-claimants, including Mayor Jose Yap and others, filed a petition for declaratory relief in Kalibo, Aklan, asserting their right to titles based on Proclamation No. 1801 and PTA Circular No. 3-82, claiming that these did not make Boracay inalienable. The Regional Trial Court (RTC) rendered a decision in their favor, which the Court of Appeals (CA) affirmed.

During the pendency of the appeal, on May 22, 2006, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued Proclamation No. 1064, which classified Boracay into 400 hectares of reserved forest land and 628.96 hectares of agricultural land. Petitioners-claimants, including Dr. Orlando Sacay and other landowners, filed a petition for prohibition, mandamus, and nullification of Proclamation No. 1064, arguing it infringed on their vested rights as they had been in possession of the land since time immemorial and had significantly invested in developing the area. The Office of the Solicitor General opposed, asserting that Boracay was public forest land, hence inalienable. The Supreme Court subsequently ordered the consolidation of the two petitions, as they principally involved the same land classification issues.

ISSUES:

  1. G.R. No. 167707

    • Whether Proclamation No. 1801 and PTA Circular No. 3-82 pose any legal obstacles for respondents to acquire title to their occupied lands in Boracay Island.

  2. G.R. No. 173775

    • Whether the areas occupied by petitioners in Boracay are public agricultural lands or public forest lands.

    • Whether petitioners have acquired a prior vested right of private ownership over their occupied portions.

    • Whether an executive declaration of the areas as alienable and disposable is a prerequisite for titling under the Torrens System.

    • Whether Proclamation No. 1064 violates petitioners' vested rights to private ownership and constitutional due process.

    • Whether respondents can be compelled by mandamus to allow surveys and approve plans for titling purposes in Boracay.

RULING:

G.R. No. 167707

  • Granted. The Decision in CA-G.R. CV No. 71118 is reversed and set aside. Proclamation No. 1801 and PTA Circular No. 3–82 do not classify lands in Boracay as alienable and disposable; thus, they pose a legal obstacle to respondents' claims to private ownership.

G.R. No. 173775

  • Dismissed for lack of merit. Private claimants do not have a right to secure titles to their occupied portions of Boracay as the land was not classified as alienable or disposable prior to Proclamation No. 1064, which only partially declared it as such.

PRINCIPLES:

  1. Regalian Doctrine: All lands of the public domain belong to the State until expressly declared alienable and disposable.

  2. Land Classification: Only agricultural lands are alienable and the classification of lands of the public domain is an executive function.

  3. Proclamation No. 1801: Did not convert Boracay into an agricultural land; it declared the island a tourist zone for ecological balance without addressing alienability.

  4. Proclamation No. 1064: Issued by President Arroyo, classified parts of Boracay into reserved forest land and agricultural land, thereby opening those areas to private ownership.

  5. Judicial Confirmation of Imperfect Title: Requires both open, continuous, exclusive, and notorious possession since June 12, 1945, and a classification of the land as alienable and disposable. These conditions were not met by private claimants for Boracay lands.

  6. PD No. 705: Public forests include unclassified lands of the public domain. Mere possession does not convert these lands into private ownership.

  7. Mandamus: Cannot compel the government to approve surveys or applications when prerequisites under the law are not met.

  8. Vested Rights: Continued possession and investments alone do not confer vested rights to ownership without compliance with legal requirements.