Lines drawn, battles fought: The Makati-Taguig land tussle in 2023

For decades, the border between Taguig and Makati was more than just a line on a map – it was a source of simmering tension. 

In a landmark ruling in 2022, the Supreme Court reshuffled the deck, awarding Fort Bonifacio and the Enlisted Men’s Barrios (EMBO) to Taguig.

2023 became the year of navigating this seismic shift, a journey marked by hiccups, power struggles, and people caught in the crossfire.

The new school year in EMBO was not just about a fresh set of backpacks and notebooks for public school students.

In August, Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano visited the Makati Science High School to lead the annual Brigada Eskewela, the government’s volunteer program for school repairs. Cayetano also met with principals, teachers, students, parents and volunteers from other schools in EMBO. 

She made the visit after Department of Education (DepEd) National Capital Region Director Wilfredo Cabral released a memo dated August 7, 2023, stating that 14 public schools in the EMBO localities were then under the management of the Taguig-Pateros division.

Following Cayetano’s visit, Makati asserted its ownership of the EMBO public schools by prominently displaying a large banner that boldly declared, “This property is owned by Makati.”

As tension intensified, the DepEd central office stepped in a few days later to directly supervise the affected schools and facilitate the transition.

Days after, Makati Mayor Abby Binay said that some public schools in EMBO barangays will be leased to the Taguig City government. Makati also started to put labels on its properties across the schools. 

“It’s not possible for Taguig to just take it, or else Makati will simply reclaim the equipment if Taguig or DepEd [is] not capable of compensating,” Binay said. 

Cayetano, however, seemed to be not keen on the idea of leasing the equipment, arguing that these schools were funded by the taxes of EMBO residents. 

For some EMBO residents, the opening of classes offered a glimpse of what Taguig has to offer to them, based on the free school kits given to public school students. These kits were compared to what they had received from the Makati government.

The fight even infected healthcare.

The Makati