PRA to probe reclamation in Matugas’ Siargao luxury resort

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) will investigate Siargao Bleu Resort and Spa in General Luna, Surigao del Norte, following a Rappler report on coastal reclamation in the luxury resort.

The PRA told Rappler in an email Tuesday, January 6, that as per their records, “no permit, clearance, and/or letter of no objection was issued regarding any reclamation project and related monitoring efforts regarding the alleged coastal reclamation undertaken by Siargao Bleu Resort and Spa in General Luna, Surigao del Norte.”

The resort will be included in PRA’s inspection and investigation of alleged reclamation activities in Siargao Island “to validate the actual condition of the area.”

A Rappler report in December 2025 found coastal reclamation in front of the resort based on satellite images spanning 2012 to 2022, and that the resort does not have any agreement with the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) of the Siargao Island Protected Landscape and Seascape (SIPLAS) for such development.

Their 2014 agreement with PAMB expired in 2017. Their application for a new one is still pending, according to the protected area management office.

MORE THAN A DECADE AGO. Satellite image of Siargao Bleu Resort & Spa from Google Earth Pro in July 2012. TEN YEARS LATER. Satellite image of Siargao Bleu Resort & Spa from Google Earth Pro in June 2022.

PRA Assistant General Manager Joseph Literal previously told Rappler that “any reclamation within the SIPLAS shall have a LONO (letter of no objection) or endorsement from the SIPLAS PAMB.”

Siargao Bleu is owned by Emmylou “Melot” Matugas-Abejo, daughter of Dapa, Surigao del Norte Mayor Elizabeth Matugas. The resort operates under Emaland Leisure, Parks, and Resorts Incorporated, Emaland was formed in 2009, according to the resort’s website, and construction started 2011. They opened in 2015.

Based on the company’s general information sheet (GIS) submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission in July 2025, Elizabeth Matugas served as Emaland corporate secretary while a certain Lani Jean Matugas is listed as one of its directors.

The company amended its GIS in November 2025, with Elizabeth Matugas no longer listed as its corporate secretary. The amendment comes a month after a separate Rappler report found that contractor Boometrix Development Corporation, a firm where Elizabeth Matugas used to be an incorporator and a shareholder, secured P10 billion worth of infrastructure contracts in Surigao del Norte in the past decade.

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– Rappler.com