Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija — The Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) has opened to motorists, but 292 landowners whose properties were used for its construction remain unpaid since 2017.

In a social media interview, landowner Ismael Rivera said that out of 527 affected landowners, 292, including himself, are still awaiting compensation from the government.

Rivera said his 33,600-square-meter land was used for the expressway, with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) promising payment of P135 per square meter.

In 2024, the landowners held a dialogue in Quezon, Nueva Ecija with the help of Mayor Boyet Joson to address the issue. They were later joined by Zambales Governor Hermogenes Ebdane Jr., chairman of the Regional Development Council, who pledged to help fast-track the payments. Following the meeting, landowners lifted barricades that had temporarily halted CLLEX construction.

However, Rivera said despite submitting legal documents such as land titles and tax declarations, both the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Commission on Audit (COA) are still requiring additional paperwork before any payments are released.

He noted that some of the affected landowners have already died without receiving compensation, making the process even harder for their families.

“The land titles and tax declarations should be enough proof of ownership. The extra requirements the government is asking for should be removed,” Rivera said.

He added that the signing of a permit-to-enter document was enough for the government to immediately occupy their land, but now, when it’s time to pay, landowners are facing layers of bureaucracy.

“Nagamit niyo lupa namin sa kapirasong papel, na permit to enter, nakapasok kayo kagad, pero ngayon kami naman naniningil, napakaraming requirements naman hinihingi niyo sa amin,” he said.

Beyond unpaid compensation, Rivera said many of the landowners lost their main source of livelihood, as once-productive farmland is now covered in concrete and asphalt.