DOJ to investigate Alvarez’s graft complaint vs Floirendo
Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella. ALBERT ALCAIN/ Presidential Photo
The lease contract entered into by the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) with a private company owned by the family of Davao del Norte Rep. Antonio “Tonyboy” Floirendo should be scrapped for being unlawful, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has told the Department of Justice (DOJ).
In a two-page letter, Alvarez sought the intervention of Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II in canceling what he claimed was a “grossly disadvantageous” deal between BuCor and Tagum Agricultural Development Corp. (Tadeco) for the use of vast tracts of land in the Davao Penal Colony.
Tadeco, one of the world’s largest banana exporters, has converted the penal colony in Davao del Norte province into a banana plantation.
In a statement, Malacañang said on Tuesday it was supporting moves by the DOJ to review and investigate the alleged “lopsided” joint venture agreement (JVA) between BuCor and Tadeco.
Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the DOJ had received a copy of Alvarez’s letter seeking to void the contract for being grossly disadvantageous to the government.
“The DOJ will form a body just for preliminary inquiries on the infirmities of the contract. And an opinion will be submitted by next week,” Abella said.
In the letter to Aguirre dated March 30, Alvarez reiterated the same points he raised against Floirendo in the complaint he filed against the latter with the Office of the Ombudsman, as well as in the congressional inquiry into the Tadeco deal that he sought.
In his complaint dated March 13, Alvarez questioned the JVA first entered into by Tadeco and BuCor in 1979 and extended for another 25 years in 2003, or from September 2004 to September 2029.
Under the deal covering 5,308.36 hectares of the Davao Penal Colony, BuCor receives a guaranteed annual production share of P26.54 million to be increased by 10 percent every five years.
Alvarez said Floirendo violated Section 3(h) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act because at the time the deal was signed in 2003, he was serving his second term as a district representative.
In his letter to Aguirre, the Speaker also noted that when Tadeco renewed the deal with BuCor, Floirendo was a major stockholder of the agricultural company and its subsidiary, Anflo Management and Investment Corp.
Alvarez added that the JVA was entered into without legal basis and authority on the part of BuCor, an attached agency of the DOJ.
“I urge your office to perform the necessary actions to immediately remedy the grossly disadvantageous terms and conditions of the subject JVA that are highly prejudicial to the Philippine government,” the Speaker said.
Because the lease agreement is contrary to law and public policy, according to Alvarez, “there exist clear grounds for its immediate declaration as null and void.”
Fact-finding panel
In an earlier interview, Aguirre said he would form a fact-finding panel to look into the Speaker’s allegation, which Floirendo vehemently denied.
“We informed the Speaker that I will constitute a panel composed of our technical personnel to [check] the legal status [of the contract],” Aguirre told reporters.
He said detained Sen. Leila de Lima issued a legal opinion on the matter when she was the justice secretary in 2014.
The rift between Alvarez and Floirendo—both supporters of President Duterte, has opened a can of worms, including embarrassing details of extramarital affairs on both sides.
News reports suggested that the two congressmen, previously bosom buddies, had a falling-out when their “girlfriends” figured in a public altercation late last year. The fight was aggravated by rumors that Floirendo was plotting to oust Alvarez. —WITH A REPORT FROM DJ YAP
