Dissenting Opinion - 25 - G.R. No. 224469 This is the reason why I cannot succumb to the notion of entitlement of the State vis-a-vis the IP's cultural and environmental heritage, so as to make it appear as if the State, through the reckless use of its police power under P.D. No. 705, summarily dismisses IP rights as no longer a point of concern for it is "only police power," and police power alone, that matters. Before Us is not merely an issue of "State versus IPs" where the rights of the IPs are unduly sacrificed in favor of the all-mighty State. On the contrary, one would not have to go so far as the confines of P.D. No. 705 itself to realize that the issue at hand most especially involves every citizen's right to a healthy ecology. In its "Whereas clauses," P.D. No. 705 explicitly declares the need to place emphasis not only on the utilization of forest lands and lands of the public domain but more so on their protection, rehabilitation, and development in order to ensure the continuity of their production condition. 7 Clearly, then, the main objective of P.D. No. 705 is not to empower the State to the detriment of IPs, but rather, to rectify the existing policies that remain unresponsive to the pressing issue of the depletion of our country's natural resources. Indeed, there exists legitimate objectives by which this police power is exercised through the employment of reasonable means within the confines of the law. ° Make no mistake, though, I am by no means insensitive to the challenges IPs face. All this signifies, simply, is that before We ultimately decide on what would be the fate of our generation's ecology, and every generation after ours, it is imperative to put things in its proper perspective. In Cruz, it was pointed out that as early as 1997, around 12 million Filipinos are members of the 110 or so indigenous cultural communities (ICC), accounting for more than 17% of the estimated 70 million Filipinos in the country. Moreover, as of June 1998, over 2.5 million hectares have been claimed by various IPs as ancestral domains; and over 10 thousand hectares, as ancestral lands. In addition, ancestral domains cover 80 percent of our mineral resources and between 8 and 10 million of the 30 million hectares of land in the country. This means that 4/5 of its natural resources and 1/3 of the country's land will be concentrated among 12 million Filipinos 70 P.D. No. 705 provides: WHEREAS, proper classification, management and utilization of the lands of the public domain to maximize their productivity to meet the demands of our increasing population is urgently needed; WHEREAS, to achieve the above purpose, it is necessary to reassess the multiple uses of forest lands and resources before allowing any utilization thereof to optimize the benefits that can be derived therefrom; ~ ' WHEREAS, it is also imperative to place emphasis not only on the utilization thereof but more so on the protection, rehabilitation and development of forest lands, in order to ensure the continuity of their productive condition; WHEREAS, the present laws and regulations governing forest lands are not responsive enough to support re-oriented government programs, projects and efforts on the proper classification and delimitation of the lands of the public domain, and the management, utilization, protection, rehabilitation, and development of forest lands; (/