Makati’s ‘mole people’: Truth or urban legend?

After a woman was found emerging from a drainage hole in Makati, speculations rose about the so-called "mole people," or people appearing to live in drainages.

In Mark Salazar’s special report on “24 Oras” on Thursday, CCTV footage caught on Monday three people entering the same hole where the woman surfaced.

“Napag-alaman po natin na ang butas sa drainage ay tagusan. Ang tagos pala nito ay sa Pio del Pilar sa creek. Nakipag-ugnayan ang investigation natin sa Substation 3 para sila ang makipag-ugnayan sa barangay at magawa ang dapat gawin dun gaya ng rescue operation,” said Police Captain Jenibeth Artista, Makati Police Station spokesperson.

(We found that the hole drainage leads to a creek in Pio del Pilar. We coordinated with Substation 3 to contact the barangay to undertake necessary steps such as rescue operation.)

The 450-meter drainage in Rufino St. leads to a creek in Dela Rosa St. corner Amorsolo St. in Barangay Pio del Pilar.

GMA Integrated News waited for a person to come out of the tunnel, but to no avail.

However, a photographer named William said some men came out from the creek’s concrete culvert.

They told him that they were only resting at the front of the culvert.

“When they are spotted in canals or in other drainages in the area or in the city, it's often when they're hiding from the heat, the elements or just trying to rest. That is what they claim. You can't pass through the culverts,” William said.

The police said the sewer pipes lead from one place to another.

Once you enter it, you can reach Adelantado in Rufino. If you turn right, you can reach Chino Roces, with a distance of about 100 meters.

A barangay tanod said a man was seen coming out from a drainage hole in Chino Roces.

The hole was narrow. The space may be enough to fit a person, but how a person can move inside remains a mystery.

In Rufino, the entrances of some drainages were dismantled to widen the spaces.

There were a lot of speculations about what the mole people are doing in the drainages, but police have yet to find proof.

“Mga gamit lang simple tools tulad ng pliers, screwdriver, at wrench. Wala naman po maliban sa ilang damit. Maaring ginagamit nila para unti-unting mapalaki yun mismong drainage at mapasukan nila ang drainage. Wala naman pong indikasyon o ebidensya na may bumabatak sa lugar na yun,” Artista said.

(We found pliers, a screwdriver, a wrench, and some clothes. Maybe they use the tools to widen the drainage. We did not find evidence proving that they live there.)

During the rainy season, water rises in the creek, so it seems the drainage is uninhabitable. However, some people tend to stay there because of the hot weather.

Should there be an illegal activity along the drainage, the Makati police have requested the Makati local government unit to do an engineering intervention to bar people from coming inside. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/LDF, GMA Integrated News