A GROUP has advised three of the country’s largest firms seeking to bid for the sequestered “Payanig sa Pasig” property to determine first the lot’s rightful owner before submitting their documents to the government.
Dennis Manalo, legal counsel for BLEMP Commercial Philippines Inc., claimed the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) doesn’t have the “valid and original” title of the 18.5-hectare property that used to be a theme park in the 1990s.
“To put it in the simplest terms possible, the PCGG and the government can’t sell something that they do not own,” Manalo said in a statement.
“Does the PCGG have the valid and original titles for the 18.5 hectares? No, they do not. BLEMP has them. Does the PCGG have the duly executed Deeds of Absolute Sale signed by the original owners? No, they do not. BLEMP has them. Has the PCGG paid for any real-property taxes of the property? No, they have not. BLEMP has,” he said.
The SM, Ayala Group and San Miguel Corp. (SMC) all expressed their intent to bid for the property.
“Should publicly listed companies like SM, Ayala and SMC, therefore, be using at least P16.45 billion of their shareholders’ money to be led astray by the PCGG? I think not,” he said.
After the Privatization Council ordered the PCGG to publish the invitation to bid for the Payanig property, BLEMP said it filed graft charges against several government officials, including Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima, PCGG Chairman Andres Bautista, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima and other members of the Privatization Council.
“This property is privately owned, and has never been the subject of any sequestration proceedings,” Manalo said. In its invitation to bid, the PCGG said the Payanig property was being auctioned off on an “as-is-where-is” basis due to the ongoing cases involving its ownership, and that potential buyers were responsible for conducting their own due diligence.