Province Did Not Buy Lot In Haste: Gwen didn't know Bolo drafted MOA

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday admitted that she was unaware that the memorandum of agreement she signed with the representatives of the Balili estate for the purchase of the 25-hectare property in Naga was prepared by board member Juan Bolo and not by the Provincial Attorney’s Office, which is the regular procedure of all the Capitol legal transactions.

Garcia said it was only lately that she learned, when her legal officer told her, that the MOA she entered into on April 21, 2008 with Amparo Balili, widow of the late Engineer Luis Balili, and the court appointed executor of the estate lawyer Romeo Balili was prepared by Bolo.

She admitted it was not a “regular” procedure at the Capitol for her to sign agreements not prepared by the provincial legal office.

“Our MOA are always prepared, as regular procedure, sa atong legal,” Garcia said.

However, Garcia said that when she signed the MOA she presumed that “it has passed all of the necessary procedures.”

“Karon naman lang ko nahibawo from our legal officer nga dili diay siya maoy nagpreparar,” Garcia said.

According to her, it was Bolo, chairman of the committee on provincial properties, who brought the MOA for her signature. Bolo first brought a copy of the MOA for Garcia’s signature after the provincial board passed a resolution on January 14, 2008 granting the governor the authority to enter such agreement with the Balili estate.

The resolution, which Bolo himself sponsored, authorized Garcia to execute and sign, for an in behalf of the province, the MOA for the sale of 10 parcels of land owned by the estate of the late Engineer Luis Balili located in barangay Tinaan, Naga.

The 10 adjoining parcels of land, according to the resolution, have a total area of 247,317 square meters more or less.

However, Garcia said she did not sign the MOA then because she wanted to bring down the price more from P434 per square meter to only P400. Bolo allegedly told her that the Balilis will agree to it provided that the province will pay for the capital gains tax and other expenses for the transfer of the titles. 

“Mi-insist ko nga P400 gyud mao nga nibalik si Bolo gidad-an ko og laing MOA,” Garcia said.

Garcia said she already signed the MOA, but did not anymore ask who prepared it because she presumed that it was the legal office.

“The only thing that I asked before I signed that MOA was, do I have the authority?”

She added that Bolo told her that the provincial board has granted her the authority on January 14, 2008 yet. Garcia said after she verified the existence of the resolution she signed the MOA.

Garcia, however, denied that Capitol was in a hurry to buy the Balili property saying that it took two years after she was finally convinced to buy it.

She said it was first brought to her attention by Bolo in 2006.

The documents obtained by The Freeman however showed that Garcia signed the MOA on the same date that the provincial board granted her the second authority that amended the previous authority given to her.

Board Member Victor Maambong also admitted that the transaction was a bit fast.

“Paspas gyud,” he said in an earlier interview with The Freeman.

The MOA between Garcia and Amparo Balili and Romeo Balili showed that it was signed on April 21, 2008, the same date that the board passed the resolution 1781-2008 amending the previous authority granted to Garcia.

Garcia however claimed she signed the MOA prior to April 21, because on that date she was in Guam together with some of the board members for the sisterhood agreement.

The governor explained that she was banking on the January 14, 2008 authority granted to her by the board when she signed the MOA.

According to Garcia, there was no need for the provincial board to pass another resolution, because only the price was amended from P434 per square meter to P400.

“I cannot understand for reasons John Bolo can only fathom nganong iya pa nang gi-amendar nga total ang presyo dili man taas kay sa gi-aprobahan sa board,” Garcia said.

An examination of the two resolutions however readily showed that not only the price was amended, but also the total land area of the property to be bought as well.

The previous resolution only authorized Garcia to buy 10 parcels of land from the Balili estate with a total area of 247,317 square meters.

But in the second resolution passed on April 21, 2008 the total area was increased to 249,246 square meters covering 11 parcels of land.

The MOA and the Deed of Sale also showed that the second resolution was the basis for it because it already contained the number of lots and the total area mentioned in the resolution.

The amount however was already lowered from P107.3 million in the first resolution to only P99.7 million in the second.

Maambong, who is a lawyer, also said that the amendatory resolution supercedes the original which means that the latest authority granted by the board shall apply. 

On the question of why the MOA was not ratified by the provincial board, Garcia agreed that it is the normal procedure to have it ratified. In fact, she said her office did not prevent the board from ratifying it.

However, she said it is no longer her duty to bring the documents to the board for ratification. Asked whose responsibility was it, Garcia said the media was just trying to blow up a “very minor issue.”

Garcia said the board normally asks for the document and that they will send it to them. However, the document was with Bolo and her legal officer, Marino Martinquilla, could not also send it because the document was not with him.–/NLQ   (THE FREEMAN)