The vice president is not taking over Maria Makiling’s turf. (At least, not according to the Boy Scouts of the Philippines.)
“The Boy Scouts of the Philippines denied allegations that Vice President Jejomar Binay, the organization’s national president, owns a private hotel within the vicinity of the Makiling National Scout Reservation Park in Laguna,” reports ABS-CBNnews.com.
The report noted that the BSP was prompted to release the official statement “after news circulated in social media that Binay built a private hotel inside the park, and that trees had to be cut to give way to it.”
The organization clarified that there is a hotel within the park, but it is owned by BSP. “The BP International Hotel, named in honor of Scouting’s founder Lord Baden Powell, was opened during BSP’s hosting of the 26th Asia-Pacific Regional Scout Jamboree in December 2009. The hotel is owned by BSP and currently managed by El Cielito Hotels. It is open to the public and is used to provide lodging facilities for local and international scouting officials and members during BSP events,” the statement read.
The property is being leased by BSP from the University of the Philippines Los Baños, which is identified as the land’s owner.
Photo from the Vice President’s website
