I BROUGHT my family to Baguio City last week so we could all rest and recharge. While there, I had the opportunity to talk to some Camp John Hay investors (there are 1,621 of them) and others in connection with the much-delayed development of 247 hectares of the John Hay Special Economic Zone.
With the appointment of Greg Garcia as Bases Conversion Development Authority chairman and Vince Dizon as president and CEO, and with a new board of directors, the Baguio City government and the Camp John Hay developer, Camp John Hay Development Corp. and investors alike are hopeful that the development of the eco-tourism zone will finally be on track.
In fact, Mayor Mauricio Domogan is hopeful that there would be a renegotiation of the 50-year contract between BCDA and CJHDevco for the benefit of all concerned. Under the law, the city government gets 25 percent of the revenue that the developer gets.
Unfortunately, because of the obsession of BCDA under Arnel Paciano Casanova, a former Ayala executive, to oust Robert Sobrepeña as Camp John Hay developer, controversy after controversy between BCDA and the developer ensued. The mayor noted that the developer was only able to develop some 25 percent of the identified areas over an 18-year-old period since the agreement was signed between BCDA and the developer in 1997.
The years-long controversy between the BCDA during the past administration was finally resolved by an arbitral tribunal which decided that the contract of lease between the government and the developer was deemed terminated and that the BCDA should pay P1.42 billion to the developer representing fully paid rentals to enable the termination of a lease agreement.
The BCDA president/CEO refused to abide by the arbitral decision which was final and brought the case to the Baguio Regional Trial Court which confirmed the tribunal’s first award. The RTC said that “as to the list of sub-leases and/or vested right holders, they will be governed by the law on obligations and contracts. And the Philippine Civil Code, Article 1385 provides that “an order of mutual restitution cannot include properties currently in the possession of third persons who acted in good faith.”
But, Casanova was unrelenting and had a Notice to Vacate signed by the Clerk of Court and the Ex-Officio Sheriff plastered at all the doorways of the 1,630 investors (16 condotels at the Manor Hotel, 10 at the Forest Lodge Suites, five log cabins and the Voice of America Homes (VOA) and 10 full memberships at the Camp John Hay Golf and Country Club—all titled in the name of BCDA itself.
This alarmed investors and third parties with full titles. Things became worse when Casanova sent fully armed BCDA security personnel to take over the camp. Santa Banana, the Camp looked like a war zone because CJHDevCo was ready to resist any takeover. My gulay, I was there at that time, and it had to take the Baguio City police to stop potential bloodshed.
At this time, BCDA came out with a full-page advertisement in the newspapers compelling investors to sue the developer and to cede all their rights to BCDA, which was in effect a deprivation of property because the investors were not party and complete strangers to the controversy between the state-owned BCDA and the developer.
There were rumors at that time that the reason Casanova was bent on ousting the Sobrepena developer was to pave the way for Ayala to take over CJH since it already has one foot at the Camp with the establishment of Convergys Call Center.
Casanova even claimed that the phrase in the RTC decision referring to the termination of lease agreement “and all parties claiming it” included the investors, which was false and a misrepresentation because that phrase only included CJHDevCo, all its staff and personnel and security, and subsidiaries.
The Notice to Vacate compelled investors to elevate the controversy to the Court of Appeals last year, and the Court of Appeals last July 30, 2015 issued a decision that followed the 60-day Temporary Restraining Order, which essentially ruled that:
“The third parties are the possessors in good faith and for value of the units in the leased property. They have valued contracts with the CJHDevCo for 50 years despite the fact that CJHDevCo is not the owner of the land on which their property is built.
The principle that a person cannot be prejudiced by a ruling rendered in an action or proceeding in which he has not been made a party therefore applies in strict sense—in conformity with the constitutional guarantee of due process of law.
A writ of Prohibition is issued permanently, restraining the RTC Baguio Branch under Judge Cecilia Corazon Dulay-Archog, the Ex-Officio Sheriff of Baguio City, Atty. Linda Montes Loloy, the sheriff of RTC Branch 6 Bobby Galano, from enforcing and implementing the May 27, 2015 Order, April 14, 2015 Writ of Execution and April 20, 2015 Notice of Vacate against Third Parties.
BCDA is ordered to respect and not to disturb the contracts of Third Parties occupying the lease premises.”
Casanova and the BCDA board were unconvinced, and they elevated the case to the Supreme Court where it is now gathering dust because the gods of Mount Olympus have not ruled on it.
In the meantime, CJHDevCo remains the developer because Casanova refused to pay the P.42 billion as mandated by the Arbitration Tribunal.
At this point, Garcia, Dizon and the new members of the BCDA board should file an urgent motion for final resolution on the case to enable both the BCDA and the developer to negotiate for the redevelopment of Camp John Hay. It is for the benefit and public interest of both BCDA and the developer to maximize the full potential of the 247 hectares John Hay Special Economic Zone.
I often go to Baguio and stay at the Forest Lodge Suites where you can still smell the pine trees. And my gulay, it’s only place in the entire summer capital of the Philippines where it’s worth going to these days. Baguio City has become so chaotic and traffic-gridlock ridden.
* * *
The case filed by Senator Leila de Lima, former secretary of Justice linked by President Duterte to the illegal drug trade at the New Bilibid Prisons, questioning the immunity of the President has divided the legal community. De Lima alleges that the President is hell bent on destroying her as a person and as a public official.
There are those who believe Mr. Duterte enjoys immunity, but there are also those who say that this does not include the President’s attempt to expose a woman’s private life. This is why Malacañang was quick to say that De Lima was playing the “gender role” to gain sympathy.
Personally, I believe that the doctrine of presidential immunity is absolute.
No doubt, De Lima’s petition at the Supreme Court was directed not only to gain sympathy among the women. It also aims to distract Malacanang from pursuing its case against De Lima for involvement in the illegal drug trade.
