Question & AnswerQ&A (PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 772)
Presidential Decree No. 772 penalizes squatting and other similar acts, particularly the illegal occupation of public or private property using force, intimidation, or taking advantage of the landowner's absence or tolerance.
Any person who occupies or possesses another's property by force, intimidation, threat, or taking advantage of the absence or tolerance of the landowner against the owner's will for residential, commercial, or other purposes is punishable under this decree.
The penalty includes imprisonment from six months to one year or a fine ranging from one thousand pesos to five thousand pesos, with subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency.
If the offender is a corporation or association, the president, director, manager, or managing partner of the corporation or association will be subject to the maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and a fine of five thousand pesos.
Yes, PD No. 772 applies to unlawful occupation of both public and private lands.
The legal basis is the powers vested in the President of the Philippines by the Constitution.
PD No. 772 took effect immediately upon its signing on August 20, 1975.
Yes, the court has discretion to impose either imprisonment or a fine, and subsidiary imprisonment if the offender is insolvent.
The Secretaries of National Defense, Public Works and Communications, Social Welfare; the Director of Public Works; the PHHC General Manager; the Presidential Assistant on Housing and Rehabilitation Agency; Governors; City and Municipal Mayors; and City and District Engineers were directed to remove illegal constructions according to Letter of Instructions No. 19 dated October 2, 1972.