Deadly inheritance

The late Arturo Rocha had a very extravagant lifestyle. He traveled extensively, stayed in five-star hotels, and gave very lavish parties in his 5,000-square meter home in South Forbes. He had very expensive taste in cars and he bought a lot of priceless paintings from masters like Fernando Amorsolo, Luna, Hidalgo and others. With his kind of lifestyle, people naturally perceived Arturo to be a very wealthy man. When he died of blood poisoning in Ireland in 2003 however, this opened a can of worms. Almost immediately after his death, Arturo’s stepbrother, former Philippine Ambassador to Spain Juan “Johnny” Rocha took hold of these paintings and started selling them ostensibly to pay off Arturo’s numerous debts to the family corporation, the CF Sharp group.

Arturo’s second wife Maria Luisa Olasolo is now engaged in a bitter legal fight against her stepbrother-in-law, who has been designated executor of the deceased’s estate. The widow is so scared that she and her children may end up with nothing, considering the kind of lifestyle she and her children are used to. Maria Luisa filed a case compelling Johnny to show proof of Arturo’s alleged debts to the family corporation. With Johnny having the dual advantage of being executor of the estate (and therefore the wherewithal to dispose of the entire estate as he pleases) as well as the president and CEO of CF Sharp – to which Arturo supposedly incurred numerous debts – Marissa Olasolo claims there is an obvious conflict of interest. Interestingly, in the first hearing of the case early this month, Johnny’s lawyer Reynaldo Dizon of the Martinez, Vergara, Gonzales & Serrano law firm suddenly withdrew from the case due to “conflict of interest.” During the hearing, it was discovered that Dizon represented the widow in the past, when he was still with another law firm. Faced with the threat of disbarment, the lawyer had no choice but to withdraw from the case.

A person’s sudden death can leave a huge mess for the living, like what’s happening now to the Rocha estate. Arturo’s widow and their children may even face the possibility of losing the roof over their heads since their house may have been used as collateral for a bank loan. Sources close to the family also revealed that Arturo reportedly incurred debts amounting to as much as P850 million. This is what you call “from riches to rags.”

The moral of the story – put your affairs in order before dying. In this country, taxes are not sure, but death is inevitable. The legal battle can go on for years, probably leaving nothing in the end for the poor Rocha widow.

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New marine species in Panglao

Speaking of inheritance, we certainly have a rich heritage in Panglao Island, where thousands of marine species have been recently discovered. A group of marine biologists and volunteers led by Frenchman Philippe Bouchet made the find, and it was quite fortunate that the group has seen fit to include Panglao Island – which is part of the so-called “golden triangle” in the Pacific – in their biodiversity survey of several sites in the world.

According to Bouchet, who spearheaded the Panglao Marine Biodiversity Project, around 250 crustacean species and up to 2,500 mollusks are believed to be new, though the process of verification would be quite tedious. Some 100 “holotypes” – or representative specimens of the rare finds – have been turned over the country’s National Museum. A rare find discovered off Balut Island in 2006 by a Belgian that is now on display at the National Museum is said to have a price tag of $10,000.

We have 7,100 islands in this country, and one could not even begin to imagine the number of undiscovered species living in the rich ocean wildlife surrounding these islands. This new discovery should give us all the more reason to protect our resources from dynamite fishers and most especially poachers who have built a thriving business selling endangered aquatic animals. The recent find clearly underscores the need to protect and preserve our marine ecosystem – a precious inheritance from Mother Nature.

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