CA affirms Caloocan registrar dismissal

The Court of Appeals has affirmed the dismissal of Caloocan City Registrar of Deeds Yolanda O. Alfonso for grave misconduct and dishonesty for issuing titles in violation of the property registration law, falsifying and knowingly altering the date of registration of an original land title of the old Maysilo Estate to favor certain parties for monetary consideration.

The decision, penned by then Acting CA president justice Cancio C. Garcia, chair of the first division, thus upheld the findings of the Land Registration Authority, the Department of Justice and the Office of the President on the case. The Senate also investigated the land titling scandal which it called "the mother of all land titling scams."

Concurring in the decision were Associate Justices Elvie John S. Asuncion, Renato O. Dacudao, and Bienvenido L. Reyes Jr.

The appellate court cited the rule that "factual findings of lower courts and quasi-judicial bodies command great respect on appeal." He said, "Our own examination of the records does not justify a departure from the rule and even convinces us more of petitioner’s culpability."

The transfer certificates of title issued by Alfonso changed the registration date of Original Certificate of Title No. 994 from May 3, 1917 to April 19, 1917.

The complainant in the case was the Phil-Ville Development and Housing Corp., whose three titles were affected by titles issued by the registry of deeds to one Eleuteria Rivera in 1996. The firm was one of hundreds of other land owners whose titles were affected by the Maysilo Estate land scam.

Alfonso certified in three transfer titles issued to Rivera that these were derived from OCT 995 originally registered on April 19, 1917. Earlier, in response to the firm’s query on the true date, Alfonso had replied that there is only one OCT 994, which was registered on May 3, 1917. Thus, she made it appear that there were two OCT 994, one originally registered on April 19, 1917, and another on May 3, 1917.

The Alfonso certification was also contrary to the LRA Administrator’s letter to the company in 1996 that OCT No. 994 was issued on May 3, 1917, pursuant to the decision of Judge Norberto Romualdez in the Court of Land Registration Case No. 4429, dated Dec. 3, 1912.

In accordance with the decision, Decree No. 36455 was issued by the Court of Land Registration on April 17, 1917. The decree was received for transcription by the Rizal registry of deeds in Pasig on May 3, 1917, the date of the issuance of OCT No. 994.

Phil-Ville traced the validity of its titles in an unbroken chain from OCT 994 originally registered on May 3, 1917. Thus, it said, the issuance of the three titles to Rivera was highly irregular as these covered lots already owned by Phil-Ville, LCM Theatrical Enterprises and Bonifacio Shopping Center Inc.