Ongpin aide is dummy, says Osmeña

Senator Sergio Osmeña III. INQUIRER file photo

The personal secretary of Roberto Ongpin reportedly admitted before senators during a closed-door session Monday that she owned “practically 50 percent” of the businessman’s corporations, at least on paper.

Sergio Osmeña III, Senate banks and financial institutions chairman, said “yes” in an ambush interview when asked whether Josephine Manalo could be considered Ongpin’s dummy in an apparent attempt to conceal his ownership of the corporations.

Osmeña had long complained about the difficulty of establishing Ongpin’s ownership of corporations in efforts to trace the businessman’s link to these.

Senators are investigating Ongpin for allegedly using his ties with Jose Miguel Arroyo, husband of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, to acquire two loans amounting to P660 million from the Development Bank of the Philippines to buy the state-owned bank’s Philex Mining Inc. shares.

Ongpin, a former trade minister, purchased a total of 550 million Philex Mining shares not only from DBP but also from other groups for P12.75 to P19.75 each and selling these to businessman Manuel Pangilinan at an agreed upon price of P21.

For this, Ongpin is also being investigated for insider trading. The businessman has denied engaging in the illegal activity.

Just a nominee

In a telephone interview, Ongpin said the 68-year-old Manalo was not his dummy, but instead his “nominee” in several corporations.

“Being a dummy implies that one is doing something illegal,” the businessman said. “On the other hand, being a  ‘nominee’ is permitted by law.”

By definition, a nominee is either a person or corporation whose name is given as having the title to a stock, security or board seat, but is not its actual owner. This is done mainly to give the actual owner the equivalent representation on the company’s books or board.

On the other hand, a dummy is someone who is listed as the purported owner in an attempt to hide the identity of the real owner.

Global 5000, Ashmore

“There is nothing wrong, illegal or immoral about being a nominee,” he said. “It is common practice in various companies here and abroad.”

Ongpin’s firms include Global 5000 Investment Inc. which has a stake in Manila Electric Co. Global 5000 is a local fund led by Ongpin, businessman Iñigo Zobel and condiments king Jose Campos. The same group controls Top Frontier Investment Holdings Inc., which has a stake in San Miguel Corp.

Ongpin is also the local partner of British fund Ashmore Group which purchased the government’s stake in Petron Corp.

His Delta Venture Resources Inc. got a P660-million loan from DBP in 2009. It was also in 2009 that the Ongpin-owned Goldenmedia Corp. bought millions of Philex Mining shares. Another holding company, Boerstar Co., lists Ongpin as a beneficial owner and stockholder.

The Ongpin group also controls publicly listed gaming firm Philweb Corp., ISM Communications Inc. which has interests in Eastern Telecommunications Philippines and real estate firm Alphaland Corp. which was involved in putting up Alphaland Southgate Tower and Mall on Edsa. Alphaland is putting up Alphaland Makati Tower on Ayala Avenue.

Just a signatory

Ongpin also has interests in mining firm Atok Big Wedge Co. Inc., Philippine Bank of Communications and manufacturer Macondray Plastics Inc.

Osmeña said Manalo told senators in the executive session “she’s merely the signatory. She’s asked to sign something and she signs it.”

“(Manalo) is the owner of record of the shares although she had already endorsed the shares to  Ongpin. But in records of the corporations and the Securities and Exchange Commission, she is the one who owns the shares,” Osmeña said.

Manalo’s appearance Monday spared her from a possible contempt charge that senators have threatened to file against her following her failure to attend at least two public hearings and one executive session set just for her.

Manalo had been summoned to the executive session to explain her supposed ownership of shares  in Global Air Services (GAS), a shell corporation based in the British Virgin Islands with a paid-up capital of only $2.

In the last hearing of the Senate blue ribbon and banks committees, senators raised a howl over how the Development Bank of the Philippines and Land Bank of the Philippines loaned GAS a total of $180 million to  acquire shares of the Metrorail Transit Corp (MRTC).

Osmeña said that while senators were “still a long way off,” from determining Manalo’s participation in GAS’ acquisition of the MRT shares, those present were able to “establish that she was the owner of record of a vast majority of shares and practically owned 50 percent of the Ongpin companies.”

Senate blue ribbon chair Teofisto Guingona III, however, said he would “not want to make conclusions” on whether Manalo’s testimony was an admission that she was a dummy for Ongpin.

“(Manalo) signed (papers) on behalf of Ongpin, for the corporations, on the say-so…as authorized by Ongpin. She said she signed whenever the lawyers said ‘It’s OK.’ She said she trusted them,” Guingona said in another ambush interview. With a report from Ana Roa, Inquirer Research