The road to Royina Garma’s den

What lengths are you willing to take to tell a story?

It was drizzling when I drove up the Cebu Transcentral Highway. I made my way through sharp turns, speeding ambulances and several potholes to what I would soon learn to be the home of one of Duterte’s most trusted.

Alone on this road, I recalled hearing stories of salvaged bodies left in the ravines and of the frequent vehicular accidents. As I’ve learned over the years out here, you make do with the odds you’re dealt with.

I’m John Sitchon, Rappler’s Visayas reporter, and I’d like to talk to you about some of my experiences putting together this particular investigative story which took more than eight intermittent months to finish.

In October 2024, I was sent by Chay Hofileña, our investigative editor, to go look for what Laguna 1st District Representative Danilo Fernandez called a “hilltop mansion” owned by drug war conspirator and whistleblower Royina Garma.

We received a tip that it was sitting in Barangay Gaas, an upland village under the jurisdiction of Balamban town, more than 30 kilometers away from the capital.

You could say it was like finding a needle in a haystack.

There are dozens of houses in the area that could fit the description but I met a store owner in Barangay Tabunan, Cebu City, who would recount to me the night that Garma came to the area, accompanied by a handful of vans and seemingly armed individuals.

She would introduce me to the property’s caretaker and soon, I was inside Garma’s den.

There wasn’t much to find. A tree house, a fire pit, an outdoor kitchen, and a main house with a viewing deck. No papers, no certificates, no permits to recover.

I asked around and locals offered varied accounts: some claimed Duterte visited the house, that it was given to Garma by a powerful general, or the property was taken from a farmer.

I needed to find out who really owned the lot, and at Rappler, you learn to work to rethink the physical and sniff out the BS.

It helped when I recovered social media videos of Garma attending Mass held in the same property I visited, and when a barangay official confirmed that it was indeed hers.

Next, we needed to verify the legality of the property.

My journey brought me to the City Assessor’s Office to get a lot number and find out who owned the land. This is where I learned that not only were there no titled lots in the area, the property was also located in the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL). It wasn’t supposed to be there.

We spent months looking for more clues. Tiburcio Fusilero, the custodian of the area in the CCPL, informed me that there were more powerful and secretive individuals out there building structures and selling land in the protected watersheds and woodlands of Cebu.

This insidious scheme goes against what many Cebuanos stand for. This display of arrogance and impunity violates our laws and the protection of our natural resources.

But this is more than just about the environment.

Raquel Lopez, one of many mothers of slain drug war victims, told me that it was Garma who scolded her family for holding a wake for her son Rabby. She recalled what Garma said at the wake: “Bakit isa lang patay dito?” (Why is there only one dead here?)

Garma is now seeking asylum in the United States, and yet she has left a trail of unresolved injustices.

I pursued this investigation not so I could shove it in Garma’s face, but for mothers like Raquel Lopez and those afraid to speak against those in power.

It took wit, patience, and plenty of courage to take on the risks for this assignment. But most of all? Empathy for the families Garma had wronged.

When the powerful lie, steal, and kill to get what they want, it’s everyone’s duty to hold them to account, to see to it that there’s enough evidence for people who want to bring them to justice.

After all, there’s only one valid response to evil acts by evil men: We hold the line.

Alang sa kamatuoran. Alang sa pagbag-o. Alang sa kanilang tanan.

(For truth. For change. For all of them.)

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