THE legal battle between Taguig and Makati went on for 30 years, from trial court to the Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court.

It was indeed a hard and painful battle for Makati, which could have been mitigated had the socalled financial center of the country not brought the case before the Supreme Court. Had Makati not dragged the case further, it could have retained jurisdiction over the EMBO barangay (villages), and only the disputed Bonifacio Global City would have gone under the jurisdiction of Taguig.

Other legal luminaries share this opinion.

Lawyer Darwin Cañete, a prosecutor and a well-known blogger, said in his Facebook post that due to the Binay family’s desire to obtain ownership and jurisdiction of Bonifacio Global City through the courts, their efforts ended with them losing the case. And they lost not just the 240-hectare military reservation in Fort Bonifacio where the BGC is located, but also the Enlisted Men Barrio, or EMBO barangay, which include Pembo, Comembo, Cembo, South Cembo, West Rembo, East Rembo, Pitogo, Rizal, Post Proper Northside and Post Proper Southside. All in all, Makati lost a total of 729 hectares of territory to Taguig.

Tracing the history of the Makati-Taguig territorial dispute, it was in 1993 that the Taguig local government filed a petition to cement its jurisdiction over BGC. The petition was filed in order to oppose Makati’s move to claim ownership of the area. Taguig filed a petition before the Pasig City Regional Trial Court — Civil Case 63896, or “Judicial Confirmation of the Territory and Boundary Limits of (Taguig) and Declaration of the Unconstitutionality and Nullity of Certain Provisions of Presidential Proclamations 2475 and 518, with Prayer for Writ of Preliminary Injunction and Temporary Restraining Order.”

Taguig won in the RTC in 2011. But Makati did not stop there. It brought the case before the Court of Appeals, where it eventually won in 2013.

This sparked a word war between the two big cities, with their supporters joining the exchange of arguments. The controversy became really intense and grew from molehill to mountain.

With BGC’s continuous development, which eventually transformed it into a prime business district, Makati’s interest in the area grew even stronger. Having become the location of large multinational companies, BGC was one of the primary sources of income for Taguig.

Following the favorable decision of the Court of Appeals, then Makati Mayor Junjun Binay was hellbent on taking over BGC.

He even made a surprise visit to Taguig City Hall and offered an income sharing deal for Fort Bonifacio.

Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano was said to have been irked by Mayor Junjun’s show of force. She called on the Makati mayor to be responsible in his statements, as the decision was not yet final and the case had not yet reached the Supreme Court.

Taguig filed an appeal before the Court of Appeals, and Makati’s early celebration was spoiled when it was later found guilty of forum shopping.

Makati still did not stop. It brought the case to the Supreme Court. And last year, the high tribunal issued a final and executory decision in which Taguig City emerged as the victor.

Taguig’s move to take over the EMBO barangay is only in accordance with the order of the Supreme Court, which ruled in its favor.

The decision is clear: after 30 years, Taguig has won.

If Makati was used to being “assertive” about taking over BGC, perhaps the city should also give way because Taguig is now legally authorized to administer the EMBO barangay and BGC.

Taguig is not insisting on its claim over the EMBO barangay. But as a result of a legitimate court order and decision, Taguig should now be given assistance to carry out the court’s order and let it assume jurisdiction over the contested territory.

National government agencies like the Department of Education, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Budget and Management, Philippine National Police, and Department of Health are abiding by the decision of the Supreme Court. The Commission on Elections is also recognizing the Court’s final ruling as it prepares to move affected voters from Makati to Taguig for the upcoming barangay and SK elections.

This leaves Makati Mayor Abby Binay as the only one who does not want to comply with the Supreme Court’s decision.

But if there’s one saving grace for Makati, it is that it would result in billions of pesos in savings for the city government. According to Mayor Binay, they spend around P9 billion for the EMBO barangay yearly, while they only generate an annual income of about a billion pesos from them. At least Makati would have an excess budget it could use for its constituents.