President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the government agency in charge of developing military lands to take the lead in the redevelopment of the Mile Long property in Makati that was taken over from the Rufino-Prieto family in 2017.

Proceeds of the redevelopment will go to military pensions and government projects, according to Administrative Order 21 signed by Duterte on Jan. 29 and released to the media on Feb. 6.

 The two-hectare Mile Long property on Amorsolo Street in Makati’s Legazpi Village is under the Privatization Management Office (PMO) of the Department of Finance. 

The PMO, the order stated, must enter into a contract with the Bases Conversion Development Authority on behalf of the national government.

A Makati court evicted the Rufino-Prieto family’s Sunvar Realty Development Corp. and its tenants from Mile Long after a lingering dispute. 

Sunvar was accused of illegally occupying the property since its lease expired in 2003. Duterte had alleged that Sunvar got a behest lease deal from the government in 1982. (PressONE.ph)