Osmeña South Road Prpoerties pact can stand House scrutiny

By Marian Z. Codilla and Doris C. Bongcac, Reporters


LEGALLY defensible.

So said Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña of plans for a congressional inquiry into the joint venture contract between the Cebu City government and Filinvest Land Inc. on 50 hectares of South Road Properties (SRP).

Osmeña said that while he was unhappy with the call by Rep. Pablo John Garcia for a congressional inquiry, the Capitol's accusations of irregularities were “pure harassment.”

“It's just pure harassment...(the province has) nothing else to do. They can make panglawgaw (a mockery of) the contract but it is very defensible and I am very proud of it,” Osmeña said.



He said he and other officials were ready to face the congressional inquiry.

Osmeña said that while he didn't sign the deal, he constantly negotiated with Filinvest for several years.

The deal between the city and the province is a mixture of outright sale and a joint venture (JV).

The Filinvest will enter into a joint venture with the city if it will allow them to purchase a 10.6-hectare portion in Pond F of the SRP.

Filinvest is also required to enter into a profit-sharing arrangement with the city on the 40-hectare property.

Garcia said he received text messages from several lawmakers who supported the inquiry, excluding his father Deputy Speaker Pablo Garcia of Cebu's second district.

“They (the lawmakers) said they are ready to sign the resolution and it encourages me because without asking them, they volunteered to help. But I need to get their signatures first,” Garcia said.

He said the inquiry will determine if the city complied with all the laws in its dealings with Filinvest.

“If there is something anomalous, the guilty party will not only be public officials who signed the deal but also private people who pushed for the deal. The inquiry is needed so that future investors will avoid entering into agreements that are anomalous,” Garcia said.

The inquiry, he said, would also guide future investors “on what can be done and what can't be done to avoid any criminal liability.”

Garcia said he will push for the inquiry on the Filinvest deal when Congress resumes session on April 13.

He said that he may later request the Senate to also look into the deal.

Garcia said he would not name the Cebuano legislators who sent him text messages, saying Osmeña also has as an ally in Congress Rep. Raul del Mar of Cebu City's north district.

Rep. Ramon “Red” Durano VI of Cebu's fifth district said he needs to familiarize himself with the issue first before making a decision.

Rep. Antonio Cuenco of Cebu City's south district said he also wanted to know the purpose behind the inquiry.

Rep. Garcia said a congressional inquiry was because the Capitol was not getting “straight answers” from Cebu City Hall.

He suspects that a city lawyer was not involved in the drafting of the JV agreement, the reason why it favors Filinvest's interests.

“Maybe if they are under oath they will tell us what really happened,” Garcia said.

He said plunder charges would be filed against certain persons if the results of the inquiry showed there were anomalies in the billion peso Filinvest deal.

Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said she wanted to know the conditions behind Filinvest's acquisition of the 10.6 hectares.

She also wanted to know why the Capitol was not allowed to challenge Filinvest's unsolicited proposal despite being financially capable.