ILOILO — The withdrawal of the proponent of the controversial AI Hyper Scale Data Center in Oton has effectively ended the proposed project in that municipality, but opposition groups say the episode leaves a larger message for future investors: major developments cannot simply enter communities without transparency, meaningful consultation and safeguards for people’s land and livelihoods.
With the proposed facility in Barangay Abilay Sur, Oton no longer pushing through, concerns raised during the controversy are now emerging as a broader challenge over how Iloilo should handle similarly large and potentially disruptive investments in the future.
Monsignor Meliton Oso, director of the Jaro Archdiocesan Social Action Center (JASAC), had pushed for clear and comprehensive disclosure of the project’s implications, particularly for the economic well-being and livelihoods of affected communities.
“Residents deserve a thorough understanding of how such a large-scale project could affect their lives and economic stability,” Oso said.
The demand for transparency intensified during the August 14 public hearing when project proponent Daniel Stefan Robertsen abruptly walked out as questions and concerns mounted from residents.
The incident underscored the importance of public consultation in determining whether communities are willing to accept projects that could significantly alter land use, local economic activity, existing livelihoods, and even electricity and water supply and consumption.
Farmers’ groups, meanwhile, said the controversy demonstrated that technological advancement should not automatically take precedence over agriculture and the livelihood needs of rural communities.
Lucia Capaducio, chairperson of Paghugpong sang mga Mangunguma sa Panay kag Guimaras (PAMANGGAS), welcomed the opposition mounted by Oton residents against the proposed data center.
“Gadayaw gid ako sa mga pamuluyo sa Oton sa ila pagpamatok sa pagatukuron nga AI data center. Naintindihan sang mga pamuluyo ang problema,” Capaducio said.
She stressed that farmers’ immediate concerns remain access to agricultural land, increasing farm productivity and securing better prices for palay and other agricultural products.
“Ang kinahanglanon abi subong sang mga manguguma, duta kag pagpataas sang produktibidad sa ila nga produkto kag ang pagpataas sang presyo, labi na gid sa palay. Nakita naton nga indi kinahanglanon ang AI Data Center,” she added.
Capaducio also raised the wider issue of land-use conversion, calling for a halt to large-scale conversion practices and criticizing proposed developments that could displace agricultural communities.
“These projects could endanger the homes, livelihoods, and natural resources of Filipinos nationwide,” she warned.
The Oton controversy also reflected a larger policy challenge confronting rapidly developing areas such as Iloilo: how to attract emerging technology and high-value investments without marginalizing communities whose land, resources and livelihoods could be affected.
For residents and advocacy groups, the collapse of the proposed AI data center does not necessarily mean Iloilo should shut its doors to technological investments.
Instead, they maintain that future projects must establish their social acceptability early by clearly explaining their scale, environmental and economic implications and potential effects on host communities.
The original opposition had centered on precisely that balance — allowing technological and economic progress while protecting residents’ rights, interests and sustainable livelihoods.
The abandoned Oton proposal may therefore leave behind a precedent for future large-scale investors: community acceptance cannot be treated as an afterthought./PN
