McKinley property belongs to Corona daughter

MANILA, Philippines—The defense team presented Thursday a witness  who testified that a McKinley property allegedly owned by Chief Justice Renato Corona belonged to his daughter.

Roberto Villaluz, officer-in-charge of the assessor’s office in Taguig City, showed the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, a copy of the McKinley property’s tax declaration and transfer certificate of title in the name of Maria Charina Corona.

“I have here the original copy of the tax declaration… registered in the name of Ma. Charina Corona,” said Villaluz under direct examination by defense lawyer Dennis Manalo.

Villaluz also provided a copy of the transfer certificate of title, also registered in the name of Ma. Charina Corona.

Before this, Manalo said the witness’s testimony would show that the property did not belong to the Chief Justice that was why he did not declare it in his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth.

A witness for the prosecution, Giovanni Ng, financial director of the Megaworld Corp, testified on January 30  that the deed of sale of the property was in the name of Charina but her parents, the Chief Justice and wife, Cristina, paid for it.

Ng presented 24 official receipts from Megaworld which showed that the couple paid an amount of P57,834.70 each year from September 2006 until August 2008, and another receipt showed that they paid an amount of P4,858,114.80 in August 29, 2008.

Villaluz also testified on the authenticity of two the assessed and market values of two other properties in Taguig in the name of the Corona couple.

He said the assessed value of the Bonifacio Ridge property was P1, 421, 990 while the market value of the Bellagio property was P5,827,200 and its assessed value was P3,496, 310.

The Bonifacio Ridge and Belagio properties were both included in the 2010 SALN of the Chief Justice.