By Jujemay G. Awit and Karlon N. Rama
Saturday, December 3, 2011
CEBU CITY -- In boxing terms, it will be a title fight.
Representative Manny Pacquiao is “100 percent” joining the public auction that Court Sheriff Eugene Fuentes has scheduled to sell a titled portion of the South Reclamation Properties (SRP) this month, said local boxing promoter and Pacquiao confidant Rex “Wakee” Salud on Friday.
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Salud even has a prediction. Manny will win.
“Kaya kaayo na ni Manny kay barato ang yuta (Manny can handle it because the lot is cheap),” Salud said. If Pacquiao wins, he gets the title to nearly 10 hectares of coast-side prime land.
But City Hall consultant and lawyer Jade Ponce is butting heads with Fuentes, and said pushing through with the auction constitutes grave abuse of discretion. The auction is intended to raise money to pay the P133-million claim being made by a group of people who claim to be the heirs of Fr. Vicente Rallos.
The heirs claim that the City, without expropriation, took a parcel of the priest’s land in Sambag 1 and made it into a road five decades ago. They sued to get paid and managed to secure P56 million. The P133 million Fuentes is raising is to pay for “12 percent of the 12 percent interest.”
The current City Government is opposing the added payments, however.
Compromise
It has asked the trial court to take cognizance of recently discovered evidence -- a 1940s compromise agreement between Fr. Rallos and his aunts, which provided that the lot the heirs are now claiming to be theirs was actually supposed to be donated to the City.
This remains under litigation at the appellate court, one reason to defer any activity that involves taking government money or property in favor of the heirs.
Ponce pointed out that Judge James Stewart Himalaloan, the judge Sheriff Fuentes said he is making the auction for, never authorized it.
Himalaloan, in an order dated October 26, instead directed compliance with a Supreme Court (SC) circular that said all money claims against the Government must first be filed with the Commission on Audit.
Salud was at the Palace of Justice Friday for a legal battle of his own, a P10-million bouncing check case lodged against him by a businesswoman in 2004.
Almacita Paray, in her suit, said Salud gave her two bad checks, each worth P5 million, as guarantee for a loan that he allegedly failed to make good. And when she cashed the check, she said, the bank refused to honor it.
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‘100 percent’
Salud, in an earlier interview, denied any personal liability over the bad check and said Paray and her businessman father, Teodoro Go, should instead run after the businessman who benefited from the loan.
He said the supposed P10-million debt wasn’t a personal loan but part of a rediscounting deal, which Salud said he brokered in exchange for a cut of the profit.
Paray, in a pleading dated July 17, 2004, asked that the trial court issue a writ of preliminary attachment over a parcel of land Salud owned, as an assurance that she’d get paid if she won the case.
If he fails to pay, the lot would get auctioned in a process similar to the one that Pacquiao, according to Salud, is “100 percent” interested in joining.
“I will call Pacquiao for the schedule of the public auction because I am very sure he will avail (himself of it),” Salud told reporters.
But before the auction can proceed, the Rallos heirs need to put up a bond.
Last Thursday, Sheriff Fuentes said the Rallos heirs need to put up P1.2 billion as an indemnity bond, which will serve as a guarantee to any damage that the December 13 public auction may cause to Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI).
Impact
The amount represents the estimated cost of the development introduced by the FLI, which had entered into a P25-billion joint venture agreement with the City Government.
The giant land developer is undertaking the 50.6-hectare residential and commercial development project.
Interviewed separately, Representative Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City, south district) said he would blame Filinvest if it wants to withdraw from the contract because of the Rallos controversy.
Osmeña was confronted with a provision under the joint venture with FLI that the real estate developer can withdraw from the contract, if there are legal impediments.
“It is possible. Because who will buy if you will have a case like that when it’s not the only condominium in Cebu?” said Osmeña.
As part of the joint venture, FLI is developing Citta de Mare, a condominium complex with a park and pool in the SRP.
Osmeña admitted there is a clause that would allow FLI to withdraw from the contract. The right to get out, though, refers to when there are encumbrances in the transfer of the title under the name of FLI.
Way out
It provides that in the event of a suit, proceeding, investigation or other legal action questioning the City’s titles of SRP lots and its right to dispose of the sale and joint venture properties “and to carry out the objects of this agreement, the City shall indemnify and hold FLI free from any and all claims, damages, expenses and liabilities arising therefrom or relating thereto.”
“Should any such pending or future suit, proceeding or action be decided adversely against Cebu City or result in a judgment affecting the City’s performance of its obligations, or which would prevent the transfer of the properties under the name of FLI…then FLI should have the option to cancel and terminate this agreement and be reimbursed by Cebu City for any and all amounts which may have been paid to the City for the sale properties, and spent by FLI for the development of the joint venture properties…,” the contract read.
Osmeña lamented that the FLI property will be adversely affected by the negative publicity caused by the claims of the heirs of Fr. Rallos.
This, he said, can be rectified if Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama will put an appropriation for the Rallos lot payment in the 2012 budget.
“Enough is enough! They don’t have to release the money and it doesn’t have to be for Rallos, the appropriation can be for statutory obligations,” said Osmeña. This way, the Ralloses won’t have grounds to insist on a property because there is an appropriation for it.
‘No way’
But City Attorney Joseph Bernaldez said there is no way the Ralloses can insist on auctioning off the FLI property.
“There is no way because there will be no auction in the first place, since FLI filed a third-party claim,” said Bernaldez.
He explained that under the Rules of Court, once there is a third-party claimant, the sheriff has no power to levy except if the other party can put up a bond. In the case of the Ralloses, the bond is over P1 billion.
If the sheriff pursues the auction, Bernaldez warned him of a possible violation of the Rules of Court.
Bernaldez will also revisit the FLI contract on the possibility that it may withdraw from the JV.
“The fact is, we have not heard of plans from FLI to withdraw from the contract,” said Bernaldez. (With Gerome M. Dalipe/Sun.Star Cebu)
Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on December 03, 2011.
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