Junjun Binay: COA report on 'overpriced' building a vindication

MANILA, Philippines - Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay on Wednesday said the Commission on Audit (COA) memorandum issued last February saying that there was no overpricing in the construction of the Makati City Hall Building 2- which houses parking floors and offices– shows that the plunder complaint lodged against him, his father and 22 other city officials was politically motivated and a “well-funded demolition job.”

“The COA memorandum validates our position that this so-called plunder complaint is not supported by facts and is part of a well-funded demolition job against my father, Vice President Jejomar C. Binay,” the mayor said.

Binay also revealed that complainant Renato Bondal was in Cebu Tuesday and is set to go on a tour of Iloilo and other key cities in the Visayas to spread lies against the vice president.

“How can a local politician, a perennial loser at that, suddenly find the resources and the boldness to go on a region-wide speaking tour with media coverage? There are obviously national-level backers behind him,” Binay said.

Binay said he expects more of these baseless accusations to surface within the coming weeks particularly on the construction of other city buildings and other city programs.

“They will be filing complaints on the Friendship Suites, Makati Science High School, the new Ospital ng Makati, our birthday cakes for seniors, among other programs. We are ready to face these allegations. All these projects have passed COA scrutiny but that will not prevent our detractors from proceeding with their demolition campaign,” he said.

Results of the COA probe apparently belie allegations made by complainants Bondal and Ching Enciso of the group Save Makati Movement (SMM), who filed the P1.56-billion plunder charge against Vice President Jejomar Binay and his son last month.

The six-page COA report issued by resident auditor Cecilia Caga-anan said the construction of the Makati City Hall Building 2  along F. Zobel Street in Barangay Poblacion was reasonably priced.

She submitted the investigation results through a memorandum to National Capital Region local government sector head Carmelita Antasuda in response to a letter by Bondal himself dated Jan. 10, 2014 asking for a probe, specifically on the alleged discrepancy between the actual project cost and data from the National Statistics Office.

Copies of the letter were sent to Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and COA Chairman Ma. Gracia Pulido-Tan, who referred the same for action to the audit agency’s Metro Manila office.

In particular, the COA report said there was no basis for the claim of discrepancy between the project cost and statistics from the NSO cited by Bondal.

“The statistical data was derived from the copy of approved building permits being issued by building officials. Inquiry made from building officials disclosed that the building permits were based on the approved building standards and documentary requirements without evaluation of the construction cost,” Caga-anan explained.

She noted that construction cost of buildings vary depending on design and whether it is a high-rise or low-rise building.

“High-rise building with unstable soil conditions will entail a more rigid and complicated base/structural preparations and requires higher quantity and quality of materials to be used,” her report read.

“Structures with parking areas require different design as compared to a common/regular building, which is subjected to heavier and moving loads. In addition, the building is designed to withstand earthquake with certain level of intensity,” Caga-anan said.

The COA report cited the construction of the main building of the Makati City Hall as “a classic example” of such since, based on research and available data, “the soil structure was found soft” which is why “hard strata at this area was reached from 13 meters to 15 meters elevation from the ground.”

Caga-anan, citing all five phases of construction, said COA’s technical audit specialists found the contract price of the Makati parking building “reasonable.”

The technical audit team also checked previous audit reports and found that these “did not disclose any adverse finding” on the project in annual audit reports issued from 2008 to 2010, in the files of audit observation memoranda and notices of suspension and disallowance.

“Thus it could be construed that the payments were allowed in audit,” Caga-anan’s report, issued five months before the plunder case was lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman, stated.

Binay’s camp had earlier claimed that the charges had no factual or legal basis and form part of a demolition job linked to the 2016 presidential election.

Bondal and Enciso’s complaint lodged July 22, 2014 also named Makati City Mayor Binay and 20 other incumbent and former officials of the city government as respondents to the case.

Even Caga-anan was charged for her alleged failure to safeguard public funds, which allowed local officials and legislators to commit alleged criminal acts.

Bondal and Enciso said the Makati parking building is the most expensive parking building in the country that is overpriced by as much as P1.314 billion.

“This parking building has become the most expensive parking building in the entire country, if not the entire world, and the Binays should be held responsible for this act of wanton misuse and plunder of public funds,” the complainants said.