Resort owner disappointed with DENR meeting
A resort owner being blamed for the flooding in four subdivisions in Parañaque City on Monday expressed disappointment in his meeting with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources over the weekend.
Engr. Selwyn Lao, who owns Wing-An Garden Resort inside the Multinational Village, said he was invited by the DENR to discuss the flooding concerns near BalocBaloc creek between his resort and Camella Homes Classic.
“I was very much disappointed with the conduct and the outcome of the meeting as it was poorly planned and railroading of event seems to be the intention of the meeting,” said Lao in a letter to DENR Secretary Maria YuloLoyzaga dated 19 January 2024.
“Almost a year was wasted. It seems DENR officials responsible for this mess are reluctant to act or confront this problem,” Lao added.
Lao said he couldn’t accept that the said meeting was disguised to solve the lingering problem of the missing Baloc-Baloc creek.
“Their narrative of solving the problem was focused on convincing me to waive my rights to a permanent solution but to enter into a status quo, pretending and trying to convince me for humanitarian considerations,” he added.
Lao earlier claimed that the real estate company of former Senate President Manny Villar illegally reclaimed a creek and turned it into subdivision lots and a road, causing flooding in the villages.
He maintained that Camella Homes and Multinational Village residents should blame the Villars and not his resort.
He said that the Baloc-Baloc creek that passed by his resort was a man-made waterway dug up by the Villars’ real estate company to replace the real creek they allegedly reclaimed illegally.