Ramcar creditor seeks replacement of receiver

A Ramcar creditor has filed a court case calling for the replacement of the company’s receiver for alleged "irresponsibility, unprofessionalism and incompetence." The receiver, Fortunato Cruz, who is engaged in "corporate recovery services," was former president of both the Financial Executives Institute and the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He was also erstwhile vice chairman of the Joaquin Cunanan & Co. accountancy firm.

Complainant Globeline Shipping Agencies, creditor of Ramcar Inc., claimed that Cruz was remiss in the performance of his duties when he failed to furnish the creditors with his evaluation report on Ramcar’s rehabilitation plan. Ramcar was placed under rehabilitation by the regional trial court in Quezon City in April last year.

Globeline charged that Cruz neglected his duties despite receiving a huge salary of P350,000 a month, which is way above the P50,000 previously fixed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Another firm, Clothman Knitting Corp., also filed a petition seeking the ouster of Cruz as its receiver for charging "exorbitant fees" and other acts that are allegedly adversely affecting the goal of Clothman to return to normal business operations.

In a court document, Paul Lee, Clothman chief operating officer, complained of Cruz’s "excessive billings" and "lack of expertise and acumen to manage and operate a business similar to size and complexity as that of the corporation" (Clothman). Lee also alleged in the same document Cruz’s "lack of good moral character and integrity."

Court records on Ramcar’s rehabilitation revealed that Cruz repeatedly failed to meet deadlines on the submission of pertinent documents such as his proposed rehabilitation plan and evaluation reports, prompting him to request for a grace period of as long as 70 days, causing undue delay in the rehabilitation of the distressed companies under his care.

Chinatrust (Phils.) Commercial Bank Corp., for instance, opposed the grace period being sought by Cruz, saying it would extend beyond 180 days the prescribed period for the initial hearing of the petition for rehabilitation, and might be cited as a ground for dismissal of the petition "if no rehabilitation plan is approved within the said period."