The Philippine National Construction Corp. (PNCC) said it may take legal action against those who paid an advertisement in major local newspapers implying that the Supreme Court has rendered a judgment on the compromise deal entered into by the company and British lending firm Radstock Securities Ltd.
In a statement, the PNCC branded as misleading, malicious and libelous the paid advertisement, saying it has “recklessly tarnished the image of PNCC and its 5,000 private stockholders.”
PNCC said the referred compromise agreement is still subject to Supreme Court deliberations.
Under the compromise settlement, Radstock shall receive from PNCC a “compromise amount” of P6.196 billion as payment for the firm’s credit obligation amounting to more than P2 billion 26 years ago.
PNCC spokesperson Maridel Palogan Tacardon said the proposed compromise agreement between PNCC and Radstock also clearly states that the agreement will only be “effective, enforceable and binding upon the parties only upon the approval of the court.”
Tacardon said the Supreme Court on July 2, 2007, issued a resolution ordering all parties to maintain status quo ante on the implementation of the compromise agreement as approved by the Court of Appeals on Jan. 25 this year.
The same ruling directed PNCC and Radstock to comment in 10 days on the petitions of Strategic Alliance Development Corp. for a temporary restraining order and/or writ of preliminary injunction of the CA’s decision.
Stradec is reportedly keen on pursuing a backdoor takeover of PNCC.
The compromise settlement represents a third of the estimated P17-billion value of PNCC’s debt. The figure includes additional penalties and interest since the regional trial court handed out several years back a P13-billion judgment in favor of Radstock.
PNCC is a government-controlled corporation that has been involved in various big-ticket infrastructure projects such as the San Juanico Bridge, the North and South Luzon Expressways, the Manila Light Rail Transit System and the Manila-Cavite Expressway and Bay City.
The company has also been involved in projects in various other countries such as Saudia Arabia, Iraq, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Indonesia.