Benitez plea for involuntary rehab irks Tanco

MANILA, Philippines - Businessman Eusebio Tanco has expressed his displeasure over the recent move of the Benitez family to prevent STI Education Systems Holdings Inc. from getting hold of Philippine Women’s University (PWU) assets.

In a statement sent to The STAR, Tanco came close to calling the Benitez family, majority owners of PWU, ungrateful.

“I am deeply saddened that there are still people like the Benitezes who, after I have extended help to save their university from imminent bankruptcy and their assets from certain foreclosure, who I trusted completely to manage the school which they unfortunately run to the ground, now turn around and brazenly reneged on their commitment and refuse to pay their obligations,” Tanco said.

The chairman of STI Holdings claimed the Benitez camp has been twisting the real score between their ruined partnership all along.

“On top of this unprofessional conduct, the Benitezes continue to spin stories to portray themselves as victims when they actually are the oppressors. I am however, confident that the discerning public will see through this haze which they deliberately create,” Tanco said.

The Benitez family on Monday sought for an involuntary rehabilitation of PWU in hopes of preserving the school’s operations after Tanco’s STI Holdings initiated foreclosure proceedings.

Benitez matriarch Helena Z. Benitez, PWU chairperson and a longtime creditor of the university, filed a petition to the Manila Regional Trial Court for the said rehabilitation of PWU.

Benitez is asking the court to issue a commencement order and a stay or suspension order which shall “suspend all actions or proceedings, in court or otherwise, for the enforcement of claims against PWU and against third party mortgagers.”

The order, if granted, would suspend the extrajudicial sale of lands currently occupied by PWU in Manila and Jose Abad Santos Memorial School in Quezon City worth about P1.2 billion.

STI in December last year initiated default proceedings against PWU which the Benitez family contested in court.

STI’s move to foreclose the PWU properties stemmed due to the latter’s alleged failure to pay almost P1 billion in accumulated loans, interest, and expenses.

STI had acquired PWU’s loan with BDO worth P223 million in 2011, and loaned another P198 million to Unlad, the corporate arm of the Benitez family.

PWU earlier offered STI P644 million to settle the dispute which the latter has rejected.