Reduction or discount, Corona’s Bellagio purchase ‘unethical’

Whether it was a reduction or a discount, the fact that Chief Justice Renato Corona accepted the P10 million off-the-price offer of Megaworld Corp. for the Bellagio penthouse he was buying in 2009 violated the Canons of Judicial Ethics, according to a spokesperson of the House of Representatives’ prosecution panel.

Deputy Speaker Erin Tañada said that regardless of the amount involved, the Chief Justice got his 303-square-meter Bellagio unit at a substantially reduced rate, which seriously put into question the propriety of a judge receiving a discount due to his position.

“It is clear under Canon 5.04 of the Canons of Judicial Ethics, judges are prohibited from receiving gifts in any form,” Tañada said.

Noli Hernandez, Megaworld Corp. senior vice president for marketing and sales, testified at the Senate impeachment trial on Tuesday that Corona had received a P5-million discount from the original P24-million cost of the unit to P19.6 million because of the effects of the global financial crisis and the “water damage” caused by a typhoon on the “semi-bare” unit.

From P19.6 million, Hernandez said Megaworld offered an additional P5-million discount, P3 million of which was given “because the client was paying almost in cash,” Hernandez said.

‘Special’ discount only 1M

He said the only “special” discount given to the Chief Justice amounted to P1 million, but stressed that Megaworld once sold a unit in a separate McKinley Hill project at half its original price.

But Tañada insisted that even ordinary judges from the Metropolitan Trial Court and the Regional Trial Court were disciplined for receiving P50,000.

“And what makes the P5-million discount received by Chief Justice Corona different?” Tañada asked.

Marikina City Representative Miro Quimbo, the prosecution spokesperson, said it would now be up to the Senate impeachment court to appreciate the real value of the discount Megaworld had given to the Chief Justice.

‘Badges of fraud’

“Our witnesses from Megaworld have testified that they really gave a special discount (to Corona). But like we said, that now goes into the moral fitness of the Chief Justice. It is now up to the impeachment court how it is going to appreciate (the evidence),” Quimbo said.

He maintained that the prosecution was able to establish the “badges of fraud” surrounding Corona’s statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) from 2002 to 2010 as opposed to his lawful income.

Based on the evidence presented so far, Corona and his wife Cristina bought the Bellagio property for P14.5 million in 2009; a unit at Bonifacio Ridge, also in Taguig City, for P9.1 million in 2004; and a unit at The Columns in Makati City for P3.6 million in 2003.

However, the prosecution noted that Corona undervalued the three properties by P16.9 million in his SALN and only declared these in his 2010 filing.

In his 2010 SALN, Corona declared that the Bellagio property cost P6.8 million; Bonifacio Ridge, P2.3 million; and The Columns, P1.2 million.

‘Almost in cash’

Aurora Representative Juan Edgardo Angara said the next question would be where Corona got all the money to pay for the Bellagio property “almost in cash.”

The prosecution earlier said it was considering requesting anew the impeachment court to subpoena five banks believed to be the source accounts used to pay for the properties acquired by Corona as declared in his SALN.